ocr

O International Islamic Publishing House, 2003
King Fahd National Library Cataioging-in-Publication Data
As-Sibaa 'ie, Muzfafa
The life of Prophet Muhammad / Mu~fafaas-Sibaa'ie; translated
by Nasiruddin al-Khattab -Riyadh , 2004
ISBN : 9960-850-21-8
1-Prophet Muhammad Life I-Nasiruddin a[-Kha!lab (trans.)
Il-Title
ISBN Hard Cover: 9960-850-21-8 Legal Deposit no. 1424/653
ISBN Soft Cover: 9960-850-47-1 Legal Deposit no. 1424/4604
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any
information storage and retrievat system, without written
permission from the Publisher.
lnternational Islamic Publishing House (IIPH)
P.O.Box 55195 Riyadh 11534, Saudi Arabia
Tel: 966 1 4650818 -4647213 -Fax: 4633489
E-Mail: iiph@iiph.com.sa . www.iiph.com.sa
Please take part in this noble work
by conveying your comments to IIPH
through e-mail, fax or postai-mail address.

List of Contents
Publisher's Note
Translator's Foreword
Foreword
Preface
Introduction
The Unique Features of the Seerah
Source Material for the Biography
of the Prophet (:E~)
1. The Holy Qur'an
2. The Saheeh Sunnah
3. Arabic poetry from the time
of the Messenger ($?)-
4. The books of Seerah
Seerat Ibn Hishaam
Tabaqaat Ibn Sa'd
Taareekh at-Tabari
Developments in the writing of the Seerah
CHAPTER ONE
Historical Events
Lessons to be Learned

6 ~istof Contents
CHAPTER TWO
Historical Events
Lessons to be Learned
CHAPTER THREE
Historical Events
Lessons to be Learned
CHAPTER FOUR
Historical Events
Lessons to be Learned
CHAPTER FIVE
Historical Events
1. The Battle of Badr
2. The Battle of Uhud
3, The Battle of Banu an-Nazeer
4. The Battle of Al-Ahzaab (the Confederates)
5. The battle of Banu Qurayzah
6. The Campaign of Al-Hudaybiyah
7. The Battle of Khaybar
8. The Battle of Mu'tah
9. The Conquest
10. The Battle of Hunayn
1 I. The Battle of Tabook
Lessons to be Learned

The Life of the Prophet 7
CHAPTER SIX
The Battle of Hunayn
The Destruction of the Idols
The Battle of Tabook
The Farewell Pilgrimage
The sending of Usaamah to Palestine
The death of the Messenger of Allah (:s)
Symbols Directory
Transliteration Chart
Glossary

Publisher's Note
Allah, the All-Glorious, the Exalted, bestowed so
many blessings upon all human beings and the universe in
its entirety. A prominent blessing among them was that
He granted humanity His Seal of Prophets and
Messengers, Muhammad (Peace and Blessings of Allah be
upon him).
The life of the Prophet, Muhammad (pbuh), his
characteristics and traits and the battles he entered into
and tackled all-faithfully and courageously with the
divinely support of Allah (;3t;). enabled him to spread the
religion of the truth (Islam). All are lessons and precepts
to be followed by true believers as well as seekers of the
truth, and means of salvation and winning the pleasure of
Allah, the Almighty, in the mundane life with its both
spiritual and material aspects and in the life of the
Hereafter.
The author of this book, Dr. as-Sibaa'ie (may Allah
have mercy on him) has highlighted the main events in
the life of the Prophet, based on historical developments
and documented with guidance and quotations from the
Noble Qur'an and the honourable Sunnah. Throughout
the chapters of his book, he has ,@-en briefings on the
lessons to be learned and the morals to be deduced from
each and every incident in the life of the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him).
May Allah make this effort of benefit to all readers,

10 Publist-zr's Note
and first and forernost, all praise and gratitude be to
Allah, Alone, the Lord of the worlds.
Muhammad ibn 'Abdul-Muhsin A1 Tuwaijri
Interniitional Islamic Publishing House
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
1424 AH / 2003 CE

Translator's Foreword
Much has been written about the life of the Prophet Muhammad (<s)
from the earliest times, and biographies are still being written and
published today. Some books are straightforward narratives,
describing the events of the Prophet's life in linear fashion, often in
great detail. Others are written with the purpose of deriving rulings of
jiqh (Islamicjurisprudence) from the life and example of the Prophet
(->%).--Dr. As-Sibaa'i's work is distinguished by the fact that, after
studying every event of the Prophet's life, he sought to draw lessons
from it, that would be of benefit to the modem daa 'iyah (preacher of
Islam).
The author did not write this book in isolation from events in the real
world, sitting in an ivory tower surrounded by books. He was an
active participant in jihad, fighting in Palestine and playing a leading
role in the Islamic movement in Syria. He was also a lecturer in the
University of Damascus, where he taught Seerah (the Prophet's
biography). Thus he was a man who devoted his entire life to the
da 'wah (preaching) and striving for the sake of Allah. As such, he
was able to draw on his experience in the field and combine it with
the lessons he derived from the Seerah, from which he drew
conclusions and offered advice and suggestions which are of great
benefit to anyone who wants to engage in da'wah.
It is very important for anyone who wants to spread the message of
Islam to study the life of the Prophet (s3) and discover how he
undertook the lnission of da 'wuh. From studying his Seerah, we
learn the lessons of patience (~uhu)in the face of adversity and
opposition, and the readiness to sacrifice everything for the cause of
Islam. We see how the Prophet's approach was gentle, yet determined
and clear-cut, with no compromise on basic issues. The Prophet (:a)

7 2 Translator's Foreword
acted as no more than the slave of Allah, doing only that which Allah
commanded him to do. and leaving the issue of victory to Allah. He
was not impatient for victory and did not worry about it, knowing
that the matter was in the hand of Allah.
Although this book is brief, there is much that we can gain fiom it.
The author takes the most important events of the Seerah,
summarizes them in order to offer a brief overview, then outlines the
lessons that we learn fiom these events.
May Allah reward the author for his efforts in conveying the lessons
of the Prophet's Seerah to modem daa'iyahs.

Foreword
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious the Most Merciful
These pages about the life of the Prophet ({g),written by the late
Professor Dr. Musfafa as-Sibaa'ie, were intended to lift the spirits of
the students in the college of shari'ah and to motivate them, and all
the Muslim youth and daa 'iyahs in turn, '-to become enthusiastic
about studying the Seerah (biography) of the Prophet (*)and to
learn from it that which would make them examples to all people in
their righteousness and good living." Hour could it be otherwise
when they are being presented with the life story of the noblest
Prophet and the greatest human being who ever lived?
Anyone who reads these pages will clearly see that our teacher was
examining the Seerah in the light of the Message and the Messenger.
Through his experience of following the footsteps of the Prophet (k~)
in the field of da'wah and teaching people, he always managed to
draw lessons which he used to teach to daa 'Qahs everywhere.
Hence, he did not simply narrate the seerah in the manner of a
historian, or examine it in the manner of a faqeeh ('jurist) or
philosopher. Rather he looked at it, first and foremost, with the eye of
an experienced daa '@ahwho believes that the life of the Prophet (sg)
is the best example for all daa'iyahs and reformers.
Hence, he used to examine the events of the Prophet's life in order to
find a means that would enable him to make the Muslim youth
daa 'iyahs and guides, torches to light the way, giving them from the
biography of the Prophet (gt)the nourishment they need, the hope
that will inspire them and the practical life experience that will make
things easy and straightforward for them.

14 Foreword
These few humble introductory lines are not enough to mention the
many other aspects of the life of the Prophet (:?y)*--which As-Sibaa'ie
examined, especially the aspect of teaching and guiding people... It is
sufficient here to point out that the most important point of studying
shari'ah is to follow the command of Allah Who says:
"Indeed in the Messenger of Allah [Muhammad] you
have a good exantple toefollow.forhim whose hope is in
Allah and the Last Day..." (Qur 'an 33: 21)
-which means following the example of the Prophet (s~) in all
aspects and all dimensions. As-Sibaa'ie was hoping for the reward of
Allah in the Hereafter, hence his ability to explore these aspects and
dimensions in a deep and comprehensive sense, so his book is very
accurate and deep, but at the same time very warm and moving.
Then As-Sibaa'ie passed away, after he was content with the work he
had done in his life, and after he felt certain that the Islamic da 'wah
was sure to continue, and he passed away after setting a brilliant
example of devotion in which he was following the footsteps of the
Prophet (g~)and which he had lived in all its dimensions, as those
who knew him are aware and as many of his students in the
university heard and saw...Allah is our witness that we, who were his
students after the founding of the College of Shari'ah in the
University of Damascus, were the most keen to attend his lectures
and seminars in the university, at the time when the rich students who
lived in luxury were walking slowly in the halls and yawning. As-
Sibaa'ie used to show determination and resolve, coming in leaning
on his stick, suffering the pain of sickness which the mountains could
not bear, making his way to the lecture hall to teach the students of
shari'ah and pioneers of knowledge. This is how the spirit of

The Life of the Prophet 7 5
devotion should be, and this is what it means to be a follower of the
Prophet (&).
How wonderhl are the lessons that As-Sibaa'ie derived from the life
of Muhammad how wonderful are the lessons that he gave to
the daa 'iyahs following the example of the Prophet (kt) all the way.
How wonderhl are the things that we learned in As-Sibaa'ie's
lectures, that leadership, in all its aspects and dimensions, is the most
prominent aspect of the biography of the Prophet (kg); he taught us,
through his life and his conduct, that devotion is the most prominent
aspect of his life and behaviour. In fact, in this spirit of devotion, As-
Sibaa'ie managed to present us with a beautiful image of the life of
the Messenger, the leader of leaders and hero of heroes.
***
These pages which are now being published after being written in
haste at a time of severe illness, and after being presented as lectures
to the first and second year students in the College of Shari'ah,
include only some of the many ideas that our teacher used to discuss
in his lectures. It seems that what motivated him to compile these
pages in such haste was his desire that they become a handy reference
in the hands of students, because the books of Seerah do not have this
insight and analysis. His intention was to complete the four
remaining chapters in similar fashion -four chapters out of the ten
into which he divided the biography of the Prophet (s?),in addition
to an Tntroduction in which he dealt with two topics. Then he
intended to go back and edit all this material, adding details and
historical quotations, but the decree of Allah overtook him and he
passed away.
"... and Allah is predominant over His Affairs, but most
of people know not." (Qur'an 12: 21)

16 Foreword
Here I can only offer my apologies to the publisher for delaying the
completion of this work, for which I am not really qualified, but in
preparing this edition, there was no other way in which I could do it,
in order to highlight the approach that our teacher developed, lest it
be lost among other manuscripts on shelves, and in response to the
requests of readers who knew of these notes but then heard nothing
more about them. I pray to Allah that we will be able to expand on
this in fbture editions, in sha' Allah (Allah willing).
The fact that these notes are being published more than ten years after
the death of their author (may Allah have mercy on him and raise him
in status), serves as a reminder of what Allah (sj)says:
"... As-for thefoam,it vanishes, [being] cast o$-while
that which benefits people, remains on the earth... 77
(Qur 'an 13: 17)

Preface
Praise be to Allah who sent His Messengers with clear signs and
guidance, to bring the people forth from darkness into light, and to
guide them to the path of Allah, the Almighty, the Most
Praiseworthy.
Blessings and peace be upon the best of His Messengers, the noblest
of His callers, our master Muhammad (&, with whom Allah
concluded the series of His Messengers, and made his life an example
for every believer with regard to all affairs of life, major and minor.
With his religion, Allah concluded the series of divine laws, and
made his message the most complete and the most able to meet the
people's needs, regardless of the differences in the environments and
eras in which they live. May Allah send blessings and peace upon
him and upon his rightly-guided companions, through whom Allah
taught mankind the meaning of sound human nature Vtrah),correct
belief ('aqeedah), and sacrifice, and to whom He gave the honour of
conveying the message of Islam to all the nations of earth. So they
shed their blood and left their homes for this cause, until they fulfilled
the trust and conveyed the message, and were sincere towards Allah
and His Messenger. So they did a favour to all of mankind, the extent
ofwhich is not known, and each and every Muslim owes them a debt,
until Allah inherits the earth and everything on it. May Allah be
pleased with them and with everyone who loves them and raises the
banner of da 'rvah,calling people to Allah after them, until the Day of
Judgement.
I wrote these words when I was incapacitated and very ill, after
having presented them as lectures to the first-year students in the
College of Shari'ah. My aim was to demonstrate the aspects of the
life of the Messenger (s),which every Muslim, daa'iyah and

18 Preface
student of shari'ah should ponder and bear in mind, so that he may
gain the honour of following the example of the Prophet (~5)and so
that his da'wah may find success among people and be pleasing to
Allah, and so that he may be granted the honour of abiding for
eternity with the Messenger (*) in Paradise. Allah (~k)says:
"... and whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger
[Muhammad] will be admitted to Gardens [in
Paradise] under which rivers $ow, abiding eternally
therein, and thar will be the great success."
(Qur hn 4: 13)
So I have divided this topic into the following chapters:
a. An Introduction including two topics:
a. i. The benefits of studying the life of the Prophet (y)
a, ii. The sources and sound references for study of the life of the
Prophet (&%)
b. Examining the life of the Prophet (&, which is divided into
ten chapters1:
Chapter 1 -The life of the Prophet (g)before his mission began.
Chapter 2 -His life after his mission began and before the
migration to Abyssinia.
1 Only Chapters I through 6 were completed; sadly, the author passed away
before he could complete the book, and it was published in the original Arabic
as is, with the last four chapters omitted. (Translator)

The Life of the Prophet 19
Chapter 3 -His life after the migration to Abyssinia until the
migration (Hijrah) to Madeenah.
Chapter 4 -His Hijrah until he settled in Madeenah.
Chapter 5 -Battles from the Battle of Badr to the Conquest of
Makkah.
Chapter 6 -The spread of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula after
the Conquest of Makkah.
Chapter 7 -His life after the Conquest of Makkah until his death.
Chapter 8 -The features of Islamic legislation in Madeenah.
Chapter 9 -His character, and the fabrications of Orientalists and
missionaries.
Chapter 10 -The effect of the Messenger and the Message on the
world.
I ask Allah to help me in this work to present the Seerah in such a
way that it fulfils the aim of teaching this subject in the College of
Shari'ah, so that the students will be motivated to love studying the
Seerah, and so that what they learn from this study will have an
impact on their hearts and souls, and make them examples of
righteousness and pure living, and make their da 'wah efforts
successful, so that once again the Prophet (-EJ will be the light of
guidance for the Muslims that will dispel darkness from their lives,
and fill their hearts, minds, lives and conduct with light and warmth,
so that the Muslim community will regain its pure and righteous
character that will enable it once again to lead all the people of this
world, thus fulfilling the words of Allah concerning the Muslims:

20 Preface
"You ore the best nation ever raised up.fur mankind.
You enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and
believe i~ Allah ... 79 (Qur 'on 3: 110)

Introduction
THE UNIQUE FEATURES OF THE SEERAH
The Seerah has a number of unique features which make studying it a
source of spiritual and intellectual pleasure. Studying it is essential
for all scholars of shari'ah, daa 'iyahs who call people to Allah and
those who are concerned with social reforms, to ensure that Islam
will be conveyed to the people in a convincing manner, so that they
will know that it is the refuge to which they should turn at times of
trouble or confbsion, so that the people's hearts will be open to the
daa 'iyahs and the reforms promoted by the reformers will be more
successful and more sound. We will sum up below the most
important and unique features of the Prophet's biography.
Firstly: It is the soundest account of the life of any Prophet who was
sent, or any great reformer. The biography of the Messenger of Allah
(*)has come to us via the soundest academic methods and with the
strongest proof -as we shall see when we examine the sources of
the Seerah -which leaves no room for doubt concerning the major
events of the Prophet's life. This makes it easy for us to detect
fabricated accounts, that were added in later times of miracles or
events dreamt up, by ignorant minds who wanted to add more of an
element of the extraordinary to the life of the Messenger of Allah
(&, over and beyond that which Allah had decreed of his high
status, the sanctity of his mission and the greatness of his character.
What is unique about the soundness of the Seerah is that it is proven,
and there cannot be any doubt about it; this is something which
cannot be said of the biography of any of the previous Messengers of
Allah. In the case of Moosa (Moses) (pa)(may Allah's peace be

22 Introduction
upon him), the true events of his life are mixed with the fabrications
introduced by the Jews, so we cannot rely on the extant Torah in
order to find a true picture of the life of Moosa (+&).Many western
critics have also started to complain about some of the books of the
Pentateuch, and some of them have stated clearly that some of its
books were not written during or soon after the lifetime of Moosa, but
rather they were written long after he had died, by an unknown
author. This alone is sufficient to cast doubts upon the soundness of
the life of Moosa (2~)as narrated in the Torah. So the Muslim can
only believe in the details of his life that were narrated in the Qur'an
and the saheeh Sunnah.
The same may be said of the life of 'Eesa (Jesus) ('rg),for these
Gospels which are officially recognized by the Christian churches are
those which were only approved of hundreds of years after the time
of the Messiah; they were chosen -without any academic basis -
from among hundreds of Gospels that were in circulation among the
Christians at that time. Moreover, the attribution of these Gospels to
their supposed authors cannot be proven in any scientific manner that
would give peace of mind. They were not narrated through any chain
of narrators that goes back to their authors. There is also some dispute
among western critics concerning the names of some of these authors
-who were they, and when did they live?
If this is the case regarding the biographies of Messengers connected
to religions that are widespread in the world, the element of doubt is
even stronger regarding the founders of other religions and
philosophies of hundreds of millions throughout the world. The
stories told by the followers of Buddha and Confucius about their
lives have no sound basis from the point of view of academic
research. Rather, the priests accepted them blindly fi-om one another
and each generation added more elements that were akin to myths
and legends. No enlightened mind that is free fi-om blind-following

The Unique features of the Seerah 23
of these religions can accept these myths.
Hence, we find that the soundest biography. the one which has the
strongest proof and was narrated in the most reliable fashion, is the
biography of Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah (a).
Secondly: The life of the Prophet (&) is well known at all stages,
from the marriage of his father 'Abdullah to his mother Aaminah,
until his death. We know a great deal about his birth, his childhood,
his youth, how he earned his living before his Prophethood began,
and his travels outside Makkah until Allah sent him as a Messenger.
After that point, we know in more precise details all about his life,
year by year, which makes his biography as clear as the sun. As some
western critics said: Muhammad (:a)is the only one who was born in
the light of the sun.
This is something that is not even remotely available with regard to
any of the previous Messengers. In the case of Moosa (*&), we do
not know anything at all about his childhood or youth, or how he
earned his living before he became a Prophet, and we know only a
little about his life after he became a Prophet, not enough to form a
complete picture of his personality. The same may be said of 'Eesa
(2s). We do not know anything about his childhood, except what is
mentioned in the Gospels that exist now, which say that he entered
the Temple of the Jews and debated with their rabbis. This is the only
event which they mention of his childhood. We do not know
anything of his life after his Prophethood began, apart from matters
that have to do with his call, and a little about his way of life. Apart
from that, it is as if the matter is covered with a thick fog.
How can we compare this to the sound sources of the Seerah, with
their precise details about the personal life of our Messenger, such as
how he ate, drank, stood, sat and dressed, his shape and appearance,
how he spoke and interacted with his family, how he worshipped and
prayed, how he dealt with his Companions. The details of his

biography are so precise that they even narrated how many white
hairs there were on his head and in his beard.
Thirdly: The biography of the Messenger of Allah (g;)tells the life
story of a man whom Allah honoured with the role of a Messenger.
The Seerah does not try to make him more than human, or add myths
and fables to his life. No divinity is ascribed to him in any way,
whether major or minor. If we compare this to the stories that the
Christians tell about the life of 'Eesa (?&), or that the Buddhists tell
about Buddha, or that the idol-worshippers tell about their gods, it
will become clear to us that there is a huge difference between the
biography of the Prophet (.=) and the biographies of these other
figures. This has a far-reaching effect on the human and social
behaviour of their followers, for the claims of divinity accompanying
'Eesa (2~)and Buddha made them unsuitable examples for people
to follow their personal and social lives. Contrary to that, Muhammad
(23)remained and will remain the perfect human example for
everyone who wants to live a happy and decent life on the personal,
family and social levels. Hence, Allah (kg)says in His holy Book:
"Indeed in the Messenger of Allah [Muhammad] you
have a good exanzple to.followfor him whose hope is in
Allah and the Last Day..." (Qur'arz 33: 21)
Fourthly: The biography of the Messenger of Allah (%?) includes all
aspects of human life. It tells us the story of Muhammad, the
trustworthy and righteous youth, before Allah honoured him with the
Message. It also tells us the biography of the Messenger of Allah who
called people to Allah, seeking the best means of conveying his
Message and striving his utmost to do so. It tells us his biography as
the leader of a state, establishing the best system for his state, and

The Unique features of the Seerah 25
protecting it by his alertness, sincerity and honesty in order to
guarantee its success. It tells us his biography as a husband and
father, with his compassion and kind treatment, clearly setting out the
rights and duties of husbands, wives and children. It tells us his
biography as an educator and guide who gave his companions an
exemplary training and education, by means of which he transferred
from his soul to theirs that which made them follow his example in all
matters, both major and minor. It tells us his biography as a friend
who fblfilled the duties of friendship, satisfying its obligations and
observing its etiquette, which made his companions love him more
than they loved themselves and more than they loved their families
and relatives. His seerah tells us the story of a brave warrior, a
victorious leader, a successfulpolitician, a trustworthy neighbour and
a faithful ally.
To sum up: The biography of the Messenger of Allah (g?)includes
all aspects of human life and interaction with society, which makes it
the best example for every daa 'iyah, every leader, every father, every
husband, every fi-iend, every teacher, every politician, every head of
state, and so on...
We do not find anything like this comprehensiveness, not even
anything that comes close, in what is left of the biographies of the
previous Messengers and founders of ancient and modem religions
and ideologies. Moosa (z~)is the example of a national leader who
saved his nation from slavery and expounded principles and laws that
suited that nation only. But we do not find in his life-story anything
that makes him an example for warriors, teachers, politicians, heads
of state, fathers or husbands.
'Eesa (tg)represents the ascetic daa'iyah who, when he left this
world, had no wealth, no house and no possessions. But according to
his life-story as it is extant among Christians, he does not represent a
war leader, a head of state, a father, a husband --because he neLVer

26 Introduction
married, a lawgiver or any of the other roles represented in the life of
Muhammad (*). The same may be said of Buddha, Confucius,
Aristotle, Plato, Napoleon, and other great men of history. They are
fit to be examples -if at all -in only one aspect of life where they
achieved distinction and for which they are known. The only man in
history who is fit to be an example for all groups, for all talented
people in all aspects of life, is Muhammad (&A).
Fifthly: The biography of Muhammad (-&) is the only one that can
give us proof beyond any shadow of a doubt about the truthfulness of
his message and Prophethood. It is the biography of a perfect man
whose call went fiom victory to victory, not by way of extraordinary
feats and miracles, but in a purely natural way. For he began his call
and was persecuted; he conveyed his message and gained supporters;
he was forced to fight so he fought; he was wise and successful in his
leadership. By the time his death drew near, his call has spread all
over Arabia, by means of conviction, not by means of suppression
and force. Whoever knows the customs and beliefs that the Arabs
used to follow, and the attempts they made to silence his da 'wah,
even plotting to assassinate him, and how unequal was the match
between him and his opponents in every battle he won, and the short
time it took his message to prevail before he died, which was only
twenty-three years, will be certain that Muhammad (a?)was indeed
the Messenger of Allah, and that Allah would not have blessed him
with steadfastness, strength, influence and victory if he were not
indeed a true Prophet. Allah would not have given this support,
which is unique in history, to one who told lies about Him. The life-
story of the Messenger of Allah (3%).-, proves to us that his message is
true from a purely rational point of view. The miracles that happened
to him are not the main reason why the Arabs believed in his call. In
fact we do not find any miracle that made the stubborn hrffiaav..
(unbelievers) believe, even though physical miracles are proof
against those who witness them. It is certain that the Muslims who

The Unique features of the Seerah 27
did not see the Prophet (2%)a--or witness his n~iracles,believed in the
truth of his message because of the definitive rational evidence that
attested to the truth of his claim to Prophethood. This rational
evidence includes the Qur'an, which is an intellectual miracle that
makes every intelligent and fair-minded person believe that
Muhammad's claim to be a Messenger is true.
This is utterly different from the life-stories of the previous Prophets
as preserved among their followers, which indicate that people
believed in them because of the miracles and extraordinary feats that
they saw at their hands, without thinking in a rational way about the
principles of their calls, or submitting to them on the basis of reason.
The clearest example of that is the Messiah (;&), for Allah tells us in
the Qur'an that the main reason why the Jews believed his message
was that he healed the blind, the lepers and healed the sick, raised the
dead, and told them what they were eating and what they were storing
in their houses. He did all of that by Allah's leave. The Gospels that
are currently extant tell us that these miracles were the only reason
why the masses believed in him all at once, not that he was a
Messenger as the Qur'an tells us, but that he was God and the son of
God -exalted be Allah above that. So after the time of the Messiah,
Christianity spread because of miracles and extraordinary feats, and
the Acts of the Apostles is the greatest evidence of that. So it is true to
say that Christianity to its followers is a religion based on miracles
and extraordinary feats, not on intellectual conviction.
Hence, we can see a clear difference between the life of 'Eesa and
that of Muhammad (k~),because no one believed him as a result of
seeing his miracles, rather they believed him on the basis of rational
and intellectual conviction. Although Allah honoured him with
miracles, that was by way of honouring him and rehting his stubborn
and arrogant opponents. Anyone who studies the Qur'an will see that
it is based on convincing by means of rational arguments and on
calling attention to the visible signs of the greatness of Allah's

28 Introduction
creation. Knowing that the Prophet (~3)was unlettered, makes his
bringing the Qur'an a sign of the authenticity of his Prophethood.
Allah says in Soorat ul-'Ankaboot:
"And the-y say: 'Why are not signs sent down to him
from his Lord? 'Say: 'Thesigns are only with Allah, and
I am only a clear Warner:'Is if not suficient for them
that We revealed to you the Book [the Qur 'an] which is
recited to them? Verily, herein is mercy and a reminder
[or an admonition] jor people who believe."
(Qur 'an 29: 50-51)
When the kuffaar of Quraysh insisted on demanding miracles from
the Messenger of Allah (s),as the previous nations used to do, Allah
commanded him to answer them by saying:
"... Exalted is 7n. Lord! Was I ever but a human
Messenger?" (Qur 'an 1 7: 93)
Listen to what Allah says in Soorat al-Ism':

Source material for the biography of the Prophet 29
"And they say: 'We shall not helie1.e in j~ou [O'
Muhammad], uiztil you cause a spring to gltsh <fbrth
-@om the earth for us; Or you have a garden of date
palms and grapes, and cause rivers to gush .firth in
their midst abundarztly; Oryou cause the heal gn to&fall
upon us in pieces, as you have pretended, or ~:oubring
Allah and the angels before [us] face to jacc: Or you
have a house of Zukhruf [like silver and pure gold], or
you ascend up into the sky, and even thrrt we t?illput no
faith in your ascension until you bring dow!: for us a
Book that we would read.' Say [Of Muliammad]:
"Exalted is my Lord! Was I ever but tz human
Messenger?"' (Qur'an 1': 90-93)
Hence the Qur'an clearly states that Muhammad (s.)is a man who
was sent as a Messenger, and that his claim to Prophethood is not
based on extraordinary feats and miracles, rather it is addressed to
people's minds and hearts.
"And whonzsoever Allah wills to guide, He ex7 ands his
heart to Islam... 77 (Qur'a,! 6: 125)
SOURCE MATERIAL FOR THE BIOGRAPHY
OF THE PROPHET (;$)
There are only four main sources for the Bicyraphy of the
Prophet (.&.

1. The Holy Qur'an
This is the primary source from which we derive the features of the
Prophet's biography. The Qur'an refers to his childhood:
"Did He not.find you LO' Muhammad] an orphan and
gave you a refuge? And He found you unaware [ofthe
Qur'an, its legal laws and Prophethood] and guided
you?" (Qur'an 93: 6-7)
It also refers to his noble and sublime character:
"And verily)yozr LO' Muhammad] are of a great moral
character " (Qur 'an 68: 4)
The Qur'an speaks of the hardship and persecution that the Prophet
(g?)faced for the sake of his call. It mentions how the mushrikoon
(polytheists) accused him of practicing witchcraft and of being
insane, in order to turn others away from following the religion of
Allah. The Qur'an mentioned the Prophet's Hijrah (migration) and
the most important battles that he waged afier his Hijrah. It speaks of
the battles of Badr, Uhud and Al-azaab; it mentions the Treaty of
Al-Hudaybiyah, the Conquest of Makkah and the campaign of
Hunayn. It also speaks of some of his miracles, such as the Isra ' and
Mi'ruaj (Night Journey and Ascent into heaven).
So it speaks of many events from the Prophet's life. Because the
Qur'an is the most sound book on the face of the earth, and it is so
strongly proven in such a way that no wise man could think of
doubting its texts and historical authenticity, the events of the

Source material for the biography of the Prophet 3 *1
Prophet's life mentioned therein are unanimously regarded as the
most sound sources of the Seevah.
But we should note that the Qur'an does not discuss the details of the
events of the Prophet's life; rather it mentions them in general terms.
When it speaks of a battle, it does not tell us the reasons why it
happened, or the numbers of Muslims and miuhvikeelz (polytheists)
who fought, or the numbers of mushrikeen killed or captured. Rather
it speaks of the lessons to be learned from the battle. This is the aim of
the Qur'an in all the stories that it tells us of earlier Prophets and past
nations. Hence, we cannot rely only on the texts of the Qur'an that
speak of the Prophet's life, if we want to have a complete picture of
the life of the Messenger (,y).
2.The ~aheehSunnah
The saheeh Sunnah is contained in the books of the Imams of hadith
who are well known in the Muslim world for their sincerity and
trustworthiness. These books are as follows:
The Six Books: Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawood, An-Nasaa'i, At-
Tirmidhi and Ibn Maajah. To them may be added the Muwatta' of
Imam Maalik and the Musnad of Imam Ahmad. These books -
especially Bukhari and Muslim -represent the pinnacle of
trustworthiness and precision. The other books include both saheeh
and hasan ahaadeeth (Prophet's sayings), and some also contain
da 'eej'(weak) reports.
From these books, which contain most of the life of the Prophet (g),
the events, wars and deeds, we can form a comprehensive picture of
the life of the Messenger -> even though it may not always be
complete and in chronological order. What makes them more
trustworthy and gives us more peace of mind is the fact that the
reports were narrated with continuous chains of narrators that go

back to the Sahaabah (Prophets' Companions) (may Allah be
pleased with them), who are the ones who lived with the Messenger
(sy) and were with him. Allah supported His religion through them,
and the Messenger of Allah (&) taught them himself. They were the
most righteous generation in history, the ones with the strongest faith,
the most truthhl in speech, the noblest in spirit and the wisest. We
must accept everything that has been narrated to us from the
Messenger with a sound and continuous isnad as a historical fact, and
entertain no doubts concerning it.
The Orientalists with their ulterior motives, and their followers
among the Muslims who have little or no religious commitment and
who have been decei.ed by the west and its scholars into casting
aspersions upon the authenticity of the books of Sunnah that they
have before them, want to destroy the shari'ah thereby and instill
doubts about the events of the Seerah. But Allah, Who has
guaranteed to protect His religion, has motivated some Muslims to
refute their falsehood and turn their plots against them. In my book
As-Sunnah wa Makaarzatuha min at-Tashree ' al-lslami I discuss the
efforts of our scholars in examining and studying the Sunnah of the
Prophet (sg), and I expose the specious arguments of the Orientalists
and their followers, and subject them to academic criticism. I hope
that Allah will reward me for this work and make it among the record
of my good deeds on the Day of Resurrection.
3. Arabic poetry from the time of the Messenger C&g)
One of the matters concerning which there can be no doubt is the fact
that the mushrikeel? attacked the Messenger and his message on the
lips of their poets, which forced the Muslims to refute them on the
lips of their own poets, such as Hassaan ibn Thaabit, 'AbduHah ibn
Rawaahah and others. The books of Arabic literature and the Seevah,

Source material for the biography of the Prophet 33
which were subsequently written, include a great deal of this poetry,
from which we are able to deduce much information about the
environment in which the Messenger (z;)lived and the call of Islam
developed at the very beginning.
4.The books of Seerah
The events of the Prophet's life were narrated by the Su!~ucrhnh (may
Allah be pleased with them) to those who came afterwards. Some of
them devoted particular attention to seeking out information on the
details of the Seerah. Then the Taahi'een (followers of the
Companions) transmitted these reports and coinpiled them in books,
and some of them devoted particular attention to this, such as Abaan
ibn 'Uthmaan ibn 'Affaan (&k,)2'(may Allah be pleased with him)
(32-105 AH) and 'Urwah ibn az-Zubayr ibn al-'Awaam, 23-93 AH).
Among the lesser Taahi'een there were 'Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr al-
Ansaari (d. 135 AH); Muhammad ibn Musliim ibn Shihaab az-Zuhri
(50-124 AH), who compiled a book on the Sunnah at the time of
'Umar ibn 'Abdul-'Azeez, by his command; and 'Aasim ibn 'Umar
ibn Qutaadah al-Ansaari (d. 129 AH).
Then those who came after them paid attention to the Seerah, and
devoted separate books to it. Among the most famous early
compilers of the Seerah was Muhammad ibn Ishaaq ibn Yassaar
(d. 152 AH). The majority of scholars and rnuhadditheen (narrators
of Hadith) are agreed that he is trustworthy, except for what was
narrated fi-om Maalik and from Hishaam ibn 'Unvah ibn az-Zubayr
who criticized him. Many of the scholars attribute the criticism of
these two great scholars to personal enmity that existed between them
and Ibn Isl~aaq.
Ibn Ishaaq wrote his book AI-Maghaazi based on ahaadeeth and
reports which he had heard himself in hlladeenah and Egypt.
Unfortunately, this book itself has not come down to us; it is part of

our rich intellectual heritage that has been lost. But the contents of his
book remain preserved in the material that Ibn Hishaam narrated
from him in his Seerah, via his shaykh Al-Bakaa'i, who was one of
the most famous students of Ibn Ishaaq.
Seerat Ibn Hishaam
His full name was Abu Muhammad 'Abdul-Malik ibn Ayyoob al-
Humayri. He grew up in Basrah and died in 213 or 218 AH,
according to different reports. Ibn Hishaam wrote his book As-Seerah
an-Nabawiyah based on the material that his shaykh Al-Bakaa'i
narrated from Ibn Ishaaq, and on the material that he himself narrated
from his shaykhs, but Ibn Ishaaq had not mentioned it in his Seerah.
He omitted the material that Ibn Ishaaq had narrated if he did not find
it acceptable. So he produced a book that is one of the most
comprehensive, sound and detailed sources of the Prophet's
biography. His book was so well-received that people called it after
him, and dubbed it Seerat Ibn Hishaam. Commentaries on his book
were written by two scholars from Andalusia, As-Suhayli (508-581
AH) and Al-Khushani (535-604 AH).
Tabaqaat lbn Sa'd
His full name was Muhammad ibn Sa'd ibn Manee' az-Zuhri. He was
born in Basrah in 168AH and died in Baghdad in 230 AH. He was a
scribe for Muhammad ibn 'Umar al-Waaqidi (130-207 AH), the
famous historian of the Prophet's battles and campaigns (mughaazi)
and biography. In his book At-Tabaqaat, Ibn Sa'd mentioned the
names of the Sahaahah and Taubi'een --after outlining the
biography of the Prophet (:??)---according to their status, their tribes
and their locations. His book At-Pbuqaat is considered to be one of
the most trustworthy primary sources of the seerah, and the best in
preserving the names of the Sahaahah and Taabi 'een.

Source material for the biography of the Prophet 35
Taareekh at-Tabari
His hll name was Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Jareer at-Tabari (224-
310 AH). He was a ,faqec.h and mtrhaddith. and the founder of a
school of-fiqh that did not spread very widely. His book of history
was not limited to an account of the life of the Prophet (-s),rather he
also wrote the history of the nations that came before him, then he
wrote a separate section about the life of the Prophet (s:),then the
history of the Islamic state until the time shortly before his death.
At-Tabari. is regarded as trustworthy in what he narrates, but he often
mentions weak (&'egj) or false (baatil) reports, attributing these
reports to the narrators who were known at his time to be unreliable
-such as in the case of his reports from Abu Mukhnif, who was a
fanatical Shi'i (shi'ite), but At-Tabari narrated many of his reports
attributing them to him, as if he is saying that this is not his narration
but Abu Mukhnif's.
Developments in the writing of the Seerah
The writing of the Seerah developed further. Some aspects of the
See~*ahwere covered in books devoted to a single aspect of the
Prophet's life, such as Dalaa 'il a~~-Nubuw~vahby Al-Asbahaani,
Ash-Shamaa 'il al-Muhamrnadij~ahby At-Tinnidhi, Zaad al-Ma 'ad
by Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyah, Ash-Shifu ' by Al-Qadi 'Ayaad, and Al-
Mawaahib al-Lad~tnzj~altby Al-Qastalaani. on which an eight-
volume commentary was written by Az-Zarqaani (d. 1122 AH).
The scholars are still writing books on the life of the Prophet (:??)-* in
the modern style that is more readily acceptable to people's tastes
nowadays. One of the most famous books that have been written in
our time is Noor-al-Yaqeenfi Seerat Sayyid ai-Murscrleer?by Shaykh
Muhammad al-Khudari (may Allah have mercy on him). This book
has been well received and is used for study in religious institutes in
most parts of the Muslim world.

CHAPTER ONE
BEFORE PROPHETHOOD
HlSTORiCAL EVENTS
The proven reports about Muhammad's life before Prophethood tell
us the following facts:
1. He was born into the noblest family among the Arabs, which was
one of the noblest branches of Quraysh, namely Banu Haashim.
Quraysh was the noblest of Arab tribes, the purest in descent and the
highest in status. It was narrated from Al--Abbaas (+$) that the
Messenger of AHah (&;) said:
"Allah created mankind, and made me from the best of
them, from the best of their two groups. Then He chose
tribes and made me from the best tribe. Then He chose
families and made me from the best family. So I am the
best of them from the best family."'
Because of the high esteem in which noble dzscent was held among
Quraysh, we find that among the things which Quraysh accused the
Prophet (:??) of, his descent is not mentioned, because his origins
were well known among them. They accused him of rnany things that
they made up, but this issue was not mentioned at all.
2. He grew up an orphan, for his father 'Abdullah died when his
mother was only two months pregnant with him. When he reached
Narrated by At-Tinnidhi with a .yc~/lrellisnad.

38 Before Prophe thood
the age of six, his mother Aaminah died too, so at a very early age he
(w)e-3 felt the bitterness of being deprived of his parents' love and
compassion. After that, he was looked after by his grandfather
'Abdul-Muttalib, but he died when the Prophet (:%) was eight years
old. Then he was looked after by his paternal uncle Abu Taalib, until
he grew up and became strong and mature. The Qur'an refers to his
being an orphan when it says:
"DidHe not-findyou [O' Muhammad] an orphan and
gave JJOU a refirge?" (Qur'an 93: 6)
3. The Messenger of Allah (:~z)s--spent the first four years of his life in
the desert, among Bani Sa'd, so he grew up strong and healthy,
eloquent and brave, able to ride horses well at an early age. His
talents flourished in the peace and fresh air of the desert.
4. His intelligence was apparent at an early age and could be seen in
his features, which aroused the love of all those who saw him. When
he was a young boy, the Messenger came and sat on his grandfather's
bed. When he ('Abdul-Mui~alib)sat on it, no one among his children
(i.e., the paternal uncles of the Prophet) would sit on it with him. So
his paternal uncles tried to make him move, but 'Abdul-Mutyalib
said, "Leave my son alone, for by Allah he has a future."
5. When he was a young man, the Prophet (k?)tended the sheep of
the people of Makkah in return for a few pennies. It was narrated that
he (M) said:
"There is no Prophet who was not a shepherd." They
said, "Even you, 0' Messenger of Allah?" He said,
"Even me." According to another report he said, "Allah
never sent any Prophet but he was a shepherd." His
Companions said to him, "Even you, 0' Messenger of

Allah?" He said, "Even me. f tended the sheep of the
people of Makkah in return for a few pennies."
Then when he reached the age of twenty-five, he worked for
Khadeejah bint Khuwaylid, doing business m~ithher money in return
for a salary that she paid him.
6. When he was a young man, he did not join his Makkan peers in
their idle leisure pursuits. Allah (<k)protected him from that. The
books of Seerah state that when he was a young man, he heard
singing in one of the houses of Makkah where a wedding party was
taking place. He wanted to go to the party, but Allah caused him to
fall asleep, and he was only woken up by the heat of the sun. He did
not join his people in worshipping idols, he never ate the meat of any
animals that were sacrificed to them, he never drank wine, he never
gambled, and he never uttered foul speech or bad language.
7. He was known for his wisdom and sound reasoning. The incident
when he put the Black Stone back in its place in the Ka'bah is
indicative of that. The Ka'bah had been damaged by a flood which
caused cracks in its walls, so the people of Makkah decided to knock
it down and rebuild it. So they did that, but when they reached the
place where the Black Stone was to go, a fierce dispute erupted as to
who would have the honour of putting the Black Stone in place. Each
tribe wanted to have this honour. The dispute reached the point where
they were threatening to fight one another, then they agreed that the
first person to come in through the gate of Bani Shaybah should
judge amongst them. That person was the Messenger of Allah (sz),
and when they saw him, they said, "This is Al-Anzeen (the
trustworthy), we will accept his judgement. " When they told him
about that, he solved the problem in a mannzr that was approved of
by all parties. He spread out his cloak, then he picked up the Stone
and put it on his cloak. Then he told them that each tribe should take
hold of one edge of the cloak and lift it up. When the Stone reached

40 Before Prophethood
its place, he took it and put it there with his own hand, and they all
approved of that. By means of his wisdom, Allah protected the blood
of the Arabs from being shed in a feud that only Allah, the Exalted,
the Almighty, knows its extent.
8. The Prophet (:>,)--, was known among his people for being
trustworthy and honest since his youth. He was well known among
them for treating people kindly, keeping promises, living an upright
life and having a good reputation. This is what made Khadeejah (#+)
employ him to engage in trade using her money in the caravan that
went to the city of Busra in Syria every year, and made her pay him
double what she paid anyone from among her own people. When he
came back to Makkah and her slave Maysarah told her how
trustworthy and sincere he was, and she saw the great profits that had
been made on that trip, she paid him double the sum that she had
promised. She also wanted to marry him, and he agreed to marry her
even though he was fifteen years younger than her. The best
testimony to his good attitude before Prophethood is the fact that
Khadeejah said to him when the revelation first came to him in the
cave of Hiraa' and he began trembling, "No, by Allah, Allah will
never forsake you, for you uphold the ties of kinship, you help the
weak and poor, you honour your guests and you help others at times
of crisis."
9. He traveled twice outside Makkah. The first time was with his
paternal uncle Abu Taalib when he was twelve years old, and the
second time was when he was twenty-five, when he went to engage
in trade on Khadeejah's behalf, with her money. Both trips were to
the city of Busra. On both occasions he heard the talk of the
merchants and saw the towns of the lands through which he traveled,
and the customs of their people.
10. A few years before his Prophethood, Allah made him like to go

Lessons to be learned 4 1
out to the cave of Hiraa' -which is a mountain on the north-west
side of Makkah, close to the city -where he would stay alone for a
month -during the month of Ramadaan -and think about the
signs of Allah's creation and the greatness of His power. He
continued to do this until the Revelation came to him with the
Qur'an.
LESSONS TO BE LEARNED
A researcher may learn the following lessons from studying the
events described above:
1. That the more highly-regarded a daa 'Ql~rkor social reformer is
among his people, the more likely the people will listen to him.
People usually look down on callers and reformers if they are of
humble origins or modest background. But if there comes to them
one whose noble birth or whose family's social status they cannot
deny, they will not be able to say anything about him but lies and
fabrications which they will take as an excuse not to listen to him or
heed his call. Hence, the first thing that Heraclius asked Abu
Sufyaan, after the Prophet (%:) had sent a letter to Heraclius calling
him and his people to Islam, was: "What is his lineage amongst
you?" Abu Sufyaan answered, although at that time he was still a
rnushrik, "He is one of the noblest of us in lineage." When Heraclius
had finished questioning Abu Sufyaan and had listened to his
answers, he explained to him why he had asked him these questions
about Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (&). Heraclius said: "I
asked you what his lineage was amongst you, and you said that he
was one of the noblest of you in lineage. That is because God never
chooses a Prophet except from among the noblest of his people and
the best in lineage."
It is true that Isla~ndoes not give any weight to nobility of descent

42 Before Prophethood
when it comes to deeds, but this does not mean that there is no
connection between noble descent and noble deeds. The higher a
person's status, the more chance there is of success, as the Prophet
(*:) said according to a sabeeh hadith:
"The best among you during the Jaahilij~ahare the best
among you in Islam, if they understand properly."
2. If the daa'iyuh goes through the pain of being an orphan or
suffering hardship when he is young, that will make him more
sensitive to noble humane feelings., and he will be filled with
compassion and mercy towards the orphans, the poor and persecuted;
he will strive harder to be just to these groups and show mercy and
compassion towards them. Every daa 'iyah needs a large amount of
noble humane emotions that will make him feel the pain of the weak
and wretched. There is nothing better than suffering in his own life to
give him the feelings of the orphans, poor and needy.
3. The closer the daa 'iyah5 lifestyle is to thejfrah (nature), and the
further away he is from a complex lifestyle,the more pure, and strong
will be his mind, body and soul, and the more sound is his speech and
thinking. Hence, it was not by chance that Allah chose the Arabs to
bring the message of Islam, because, in comparison to the
neighbouring civilized nations, they were purer in spirit, sounder in
thinking, more proper in morals, and more able to endure the
hardships of war for the sake of AIlah and spreading His message
throughout the world.
4.No one is qualified to lead the da 'wah except one who is intelligent
and alert. So those of low or average intelligence are the least
deserving of leading the intellectual refonn or spiritual movement.
Rather, it is one of the laws of life that no one who is dull-witted or
confused in his thinking or hold weird views will be able to lead in
any field of life with any degree of success. If by chance or

Lessons to be learned 43
circumstance such a person attains a position of leadership, he will
quickly falter and his people will shun him, after his actions
demonstrate his stupidity, oddness or confused thinking.
5. The daa 'iyah must be able to depend on himself to earn a living, or
have a decent source of income, without begging or humiliating
himself in any way.
Sincere and noble dua 'iyahs do not accept to live on people's charity
and gifts. What respect can they have fro111 their people if they
humiliate themselves by begging and asking from people, even if
they do not do that openly? If we find a person who claims to be a
daa'iyah accumulating wealth from people through all kinds of
deceit, then we may be certain that he has no self-respect, so how
must his people and his neighbours view a person who accepts
humiliation for himself? How can he call people to noble
characteristics and conduct, and confront false and corrupt rulers, and
fight evil and immorality, and spread the noble spirit of righteousness
among the urnmah?
6. If the daa '(valz is righteous during his youth and has lived a good
life, this is more likely to bring him success in his efforts to call
people to Allah, reform their morals and fight evil. For there will be
no one who can criticize his personal conduct before he began his
da 'wah work. We often see that when people undertake da 'wuh (call,
preaching) and reform efforts, especially in the field of moral reform,
one of the most off-putting factors is when people remember their
immoral past and previous bad behaviour. This ill-spent past may
make people doubt the sincerity of such daa'iyahs, who may be
accused of hiding behind the reform effort for ulterior motives, or of
not starting to call for reform until they had had their fill of the
pleasures of life, and because of their circumstances or their age they
no longer had any hope of continuing to have the worldly gains.
wealth, fame or status that they previously enjoyed,

44 Before Prophe?hood
But in the case of the &a 'zjah who was righteous during his youth,
he can continue to hold his head high with a clear conscience. The
enemies of reform will not find any way to criticize him for his recent
or more distant past; they will not find in his past any grounds for
exposing him or calling people to look down on him.
Yes, Allah accepts the repentance of the one who repents to Him
sincerely, and He erases his past evil deeds with his present good
deeds, but this does not benefit the daa 'iyah who wants to succeed in
his da 'wah, who could have hoped for greater success if he had a
better past and a better reputation.
7. If the daa '{vahhas the experience of travel, living with the masses
and becoming familiar with the people's customs, circumstances and
problems, this will have a great impact on the success of his da 'wah.
Those who interact with people through books and articles without
mixing with people of different backgrounds are doomed to failure in
their calls for reform. The people will not listen to them or respond to
their call, because they will see that they know nothing about their
circumstances and their problems. Whoever wants to bring about
reform among religious people has to mix with them in their
mosques, gatherings and meetings. Whoever wants to bring about
reform among the workers and peasants has to mix with them in their
villages and factories, eat with them in their houses, and speak to
them in their meetings. Whoever wants to reform the people's
interactions with one another has to mix with them in their
marketplaces, shops, factories, clubs and gatherings. Whoever wants
to reform politics must mix with politicians and get to know their
organizations, listen to their speeches, read their manifestoes and
agendas, then get used to the environment in which they operate,
their cultural background and the aims which they are striving to
reach, so that he will know how to address them without putting them
off, and how to aim his reform efforts, so that they will not resist him

Lessons to be learned 45
because of personal dislike or emotional reasons.
So the daa'ij~ahmust have some experience of life and some
knowledge of people's affairs, so that he will be able to fulfil the
command of Allah (5%):
"Irzvite (nzunkiizd, 0' Mt~kanlmaQto the wuy of'your
Lord [i.e. Islam] with lvisdonl [i.e. with the Divine
Revelation alzd the Qur 'an] and ,fuir-preaching.. . ??
(Qur'un 16: 125)
How wondefil is the advice to,
"address people according to their intellectual level; do
you want Allah and His Messenger to be reje~ted?"~
8. The daa 'iyah who wants to call people to Allah should spend time
alone every now and then, when his soul may make contact with
Allah and he can keep away from all the things that may upset him
such as bad attitudes, the stress of life and disturbances around him.
During such times of solitude, he should take stock of himself and see
if he has fallen short in doing good, or deviated in any way, or failed
to follow the wisest course, or made a inistake in his method or way.
or indulged in arguments with some people to such an extent that he
forgot to remember Allah and feel close to Him, remember the
Hereafter with its Paradise and its Hell, together with death and its
"his is tncntioned in Bukhari, 1/199, in Kitouh a/-'Ilnz, Bcrub ,tlcr~ X-htrs.v~r
hil-'ilnl q(iu9mu/lduonu yuitwlil~knr.uahi~-crrcir~an la~ryc!fhanzu (The Rook of
Knowledge, Chapter: One who addresses knowledge only to some people and
not others lest they misunderstand). 'Ali (A$,)q said: "Speak to the people
according to their level of knowledge, do you want Allah and His Messenger
to be rejected'?"

46 Before Prophethood
suffering and agonies. Hence tahaj~udand qzjxarn al-lay1 (prayers at
night) were made obligatory for the Prophet (%?),--, and they are
mustahabhat (recommended) for others. Those who should be most
eager to perform these r74 prayers are the daa 'iyuhswho seek to call
people to Allah and His shari'ah and Paradise.
Solitude, tahajjud and standing to worship Allah in the depths of the
night bring joy which no one knows except those whom Allah
honours with these acts of worship. Ibraheem ibn Adham (may Allah
have mercy on him) used to say after doing these prayers, "We are
experiencingjoy which if the kings were aware of it, they would fight
us for it."
It is sufficient for us to note the words that Allah addressed to the
Messenger of Allah (&:
"0' you wrapped in garments [i.e. Prophet
Muhammadj! Stand [to pray] all night, except a
little -HaZf of ir or a little less than that, Or a little
mow. And recite the Qur 'an[aloud] in a slow [pleasant
tone and] style. T"erily, We shall send down to you a
tveigh~~Word [i.e. obligations, laws]. Verily, the rising
by night [for Tahajjud prayer] is vety hard and most
potent and good fbr governing oneself: and most
suitable fur (understanding] the Word [of Alla/z]."
(Qur 'an 73: 1-6)

CHAPTER TWO
FROM THE BEGINNING OF
PROPHETHOOD UNTIL THE MIGRATION
TO ABYSSINIA
HISTORICAL EVENTS
During this period, we know that the following historical events took
place:
1. The Revelation (wahy) came to the Prophet (2%).When the
Prophet reached the age of forty, Jibreel (Gabreal) (2~)came down
to him with the Revelation on Monday 17 Ramadaan. Imam Bukhari
(may Allah have mercy on him) tells us the story in his Faheeh, with
a continuous isnad going back to 'Aa'ishah Umm al-Muinir7et.n
(+%),of how the Revelation came to him. 'Aa'ishah said:
"The way in which the Divine Revelation to the
Messenger of Allah began was in the form of good
dreams which came true like bright daylight, and then
the love of seclusion was bestowed upon him. He used
to go in seclusion in the cave of Hiraa' where he used to
worship (Allah alone) continuously for many days
before he would want to see his family. He used to take
with him the food for his stay and then come back to
(his wife) Khadeejah to take his food again, until
suddenly the Truth descended upon him while he was in
the cave of Hiraa'. The angel came to him and told him
to read. The Prophet replied, 'Iam not a reader.' The

48 From the Begi~ningof Prophethood
Prophet said, 'The angel embraced me and squeezed me
so hard that I could not bear it any more. Then he
released me and again told me to read, and I replied, '1
am not a reader.' Thereupon he embraced me again and
squeezed me a second time till I could not bear it any
more. Then he released me and again told me to read but
again T replied, 'I am not a reader.' Thereupon he
embraced me for the third time and squeezed me, then
he released me and said,
"Read!In the Nurne of your Lord Who has created [all
that exists]. He hus created man.firom a clot [cr piece of
thick coagulated blood]. Read! And your Lord is the
Most Generous. CZ/ho has taught [the writing] by the
pen. He has taught man that which he knew not."
(Quu'an 96: 1-5)
Then the Messenger of Allah returned, having
memorized these verses, with his heart beating
severely. Then he came to Khadeejah bint
Khuwaylid and said, 'Cover me! Cover me!' They
covered him until he calmed down, then he told her
everything that had happened and said, '1 fear for
myself.'
Khadeejah replied, 'Never! By Allah, Allah will never
disgrace you. You uphold the ties of kinship, help the
poor and the destitute, honour your guests and assist the
deserving calamity-afflicted ones.'
Khadeejah then took him to Waraqah ibn Nawfal ibn

Historical events 49
Asad ibn 'Abdul-'Uzza, who was the son of
Khadeejah's paternal uncle. He had become a
Christian during the Jaahiliyah and he was a scribe
who could write Hebrew. He would write from the
Gospel in Hebrew as much as Allah wished him to
write. He was an old man and had become blind.
Khadeejah said to Waraqah, 'Listen to the story of your
nephew, 0' my cousin!' Waraqah asked, 0' my
nephew! What have you seen?' The Messenger of Allah
described what he had seen and Waraqah said, 'This is
the Namoos --the bringer of Revelation, i.e., Jibreel -
who came down to Moosa. 1wish that I were young and
strong, and could live up to the time when your people
will drive you out.' The Messenger of Allah said, 'Will
they drive me out?' Waraqah said, 'Yes, no man has
ever brought something similar to what you have
brought but he was treated with hostility. But if I should
remain alive till the day when you will be turned out
then I will support you strongly.' But after a few days
Waraqah died and the Revelation also ceased for a
while.
According to the report narrated by Ibn Hishaam from Ibn Ishaaq:
Jibreel came to him whilst he was sleeping in the cave of Hiraa',
bringing a coverlet of brocade on which there was some writing, and
said, "Read!" ...So I read it, and he departed from me, and 1awoke
fiom my sleep, and it was as if those words were written on my heart.
Then 1 went out and when I was midway on the mountain, I heard a
voice from heaven saying, "0' Muhammad, you are the Messenger
of Allah, and I am Jibreel." I raised my head to look up at the sky, and
I saw Jibreel in the fbrm of a man standing astride the horizon,
saying, "0' Muhammad, you are the Messenger of Allah, and I am
Jibreel." So 1 stood and looked at him, moving neither forward not

50 From the Beginning of Prophethood
backward, then 1 began to turnmy face away from him, but wherever
I looked I saw him there on the horizon. I continued to stand there,
neither advancing nor turning back, until Khadeejah sent her
messengers to look for me...
2. The first one to believe in him and enter Islam was his wife
Khadeejah (&), then his cousin 'Ali (+J), who was ten years old.
Then his freed slave Zayd ibn Haarithah, then Abu Bakr as-Siddeeq
(&,). The first slave to become Muslim was Bilaal ibn Rabaah al-
Habashi. So Khadeejah was the first one to believe in him. The
Prophet(,%)prayed with her late on Monday, and that was the first
day he prayed. At that time the prayer was two rakhlzs in the
morning and two rak'ahs in the evening.
3. Then after that the Revelation ceased for a while. The reports differ
as to how long that time lasted. The longest estimate is three years
and the shortest is six months, which is the correct view. The
cessation of the Revelation caused great distress to the Prophet (&,
until he was about to go out to the mountains and throw himself down
from a peak4, thinking that Allah had forsaken him after He had
chosen him for the honour of Prophethood. Then the Revelation
came back to him, as Imam Bukhari narrated in his @bee4 from
Jaabir ibn 'Abdullah al-Ansaari, who reported that the Prophet (k~)
said:
"Whilst I was walking, T heard a voice from heaven, so I
looked up and saw the angel who had come to me in the
cave of Hiraa', sitting on a throne between heaven and
earth. I was afraid of him, so I went back, saying,
'Cover me!' Then Allah revealed the words:
'Although this sentence -"He was about to throw himself down from the
mountaintops out of grief because the Revelation had ceased" -appears in
Saheetz al-Bukhavi, it is part of the commentary of Az-Zuhri and cannot be
traced back to the Prophet ($3).See AI-Fath, 121316.

Historical events 5 1
'0'you [Mtlharnrnad] enveloped in game~zts!Arise
and warn! A~tdgloria your Lord [Allah]! And purl3
your garrnerzts! And keep awajj from Ar-Rujz [the
id0ls]!' (Qur 'an 74: 1-5)
So the Revelation resumed and continued to come."
4. After that, the Messenger (gy) started to call to Islam those whom
he knew to be mature. This went on for three whole years, until a
number of men and women, who were known to be mature and of
sound nature, had embraced Islam.
5. Then, after the number of those who had entered Islam had reached
approximately thirty, Allah commanded His Messenger (->%)-I to
convey the message openly. That was when Allah (:k) said:
"Then declare what you are commanded and tun1 away
from the polytheists." (Qur'an 15: 94)
6. Then began the period of persecution of the new believers and of
the Messenger of Allah (g?).The rnushrikeen were upset because the
Messenger cast aspersions upon their reasoning and criticized
their gods, and brought them a new religion which called them to One
God, "Whom no vision can grasp Him, but He grasps aIi vision and
He is Al-Lateef Lthe Most Subtle and Court~ous],Well-Acquainted
with all things" (cf. Al-An 'aam 6: 103).
7. During this period, the Messenger (.=) would meet with the
believers in secret in the house of Al-Arqam ibn Abi al-Arqam who
had also become Muslim. The Messenger used to recite to them the
verses of the Qur'an that had been revealed to him, and he would

52 From the Beginning of Prophethood
teach them about the rulings of the religion and the laws that had been
revealed at that stage.
8. Then the Messenger (.%) was commanded to warn his tribe and
kinsmen. So he stood on AS-Safi and called the clans of Quraysh one
by one, and invited them to enter Islam, and give up idol-worship; he
told them of Paradise and warned them about Hell. Abu Lahab said to
him, "May you perish! Was it for this that you called us together?"
9. Quraysh wanted to harm the Messenger (%A) but his uncle Abu
Taalib protected him and refused to surrender him to them. Then after
they had left, he asked him to tone down his call. He thought that his
uncle was going to let him down, and he uttered the famous words:
"By Allah, if they were to put the sun in my right hand and the moon
in my left to make me give up this matter, 1will never give it up until
Allah makes it victorious or I perish in the attempt.
10.After that the rnush?-ikee~~k persecution of the Messenger (23)and
his companions became even worse, until some of them died under
torture, and some of them became blind.
11. When Quraysh saw how the believers were clinging steadfastly to
their beliefs, they decided to negotiate with the Messenger (+),-:
offering to give him however much money he wanted, or to make
him their king, but he refused all of that.
12. When the Messenger (25)--: saw how stubborn Quraysh were and
how they persisted in persecuting his Companions, he said to them,
"Why do you not leave and go to Abyssinia, for in that
land there is a king under whom no one is mistreated,
until Allah grants you a way out from the difficulties
you are facing."
So in the first migration twelve men and four women migrated, then
they came back after they heard that 'Umar had become Muslim and

Lessons to be learned 53
Islain was being proclaimed openly. But it was not long before they
went back (to Abyssinia), taking other believers with them. In the
second migration, eighty-three Inen and eleven women went to
Abyssinia.
13. The ntushrikeen boycotted the Messenger of Allah (=s),Banu
Haashim and Banu al-Mutjalib. They stopped trading with them,
intermarrying with them, mixing with them and refbsed to accept any
deal with them. The boycott lasted for two or three years, during
which the Messenger (:&)and the believers with him suffered a great
deal of hardship. Then the boycott ended with the help of wise men
among Quraysh.
LESSONS TO BE LEARNED
1. When Allah wants to guide a person to call people to good and
reform, He instills in his heart a dislike of the misguidance and
corruption that prevail in his society.
2. Muhammad (%%)was not hoping to become a Prophet and he did
not dream of doing so. Rather, Allah inspired him to withdraw and
engage in worship as a means of purifying himself and preparing
himself spiritually to bear the burdens of Prophethood. If he (%y)c-, had
been hoping to become a Prophet, he would not have been frightened
when the Revelation came to him, and he would not have gone to
Khadeejah asking her the reason for what he had seen in the cave of
Hiraa'. He was not certain that he was the Messenger of Allah until
after he had seen Jibreel telling him, "0' Muhammad, you are the
Messenger of Allah, and I am Jibreel," and until after Waraqah ibn
Nawfal and Khadeejah had reassured him that what he had seen in
the cave was the Revelation that used to come down to Moosa
(Moses) (>&).
3. If the call for refonn is foreign to the beliefs and mentality of the

54 From the Beginning of Prophethood
masses, the daa 'iyahs should not proclaim it openly until a number of
people who are prepared to sacrifice everything believe in it, so that if
the leader of the call is harmed, his followers who believe in his
message will fulfil the obligation of calling others, and so that the
continuation of the call will be guaranteed.
4. The Messenger of Allah (g?)surprised the Arabs with something
they were not expecting; they rejected his call vehemently and
wanted to kill him and his Companions. This historical fact is a
rehtation of some nationalists who claim that the call of Muhammad
(z?)simply reflected the hopes and ambitions of the Arabs at that
time. This is a ridiculous claim which is refuted by the proven
historical facts as we have seen. The only reason why these people
say such things is their extreme nationalistic views which make them
regard Islam as something based on Arab ideas and identity. This is a
clear denial of the Prophethood of the Messenger (Blessings and
Peace be upon him) and a denigration of his great message.
5. The steadfastness of the believers in adhering to their beliefs, even
though the evildoers inflicted various kinds of torture and
persecution on them, points to the genuine nature of their faith. They
were so sincere in their beliefs and so noble in spirit that to have a
clear conscience and peace of mind, and to hope for the pleasure of
Allah, was more important than the persecution and torture they
suffered.
The sincere believers and daa 'iyahs give precedence to the spiritual
considerations over the physical ones. They hasten to obey the
dictates of their souls, at the expense of the demands of their bodies
for rest and pleasure. This is how the da 'wah prevails, and this is how
the masses are set free from darkness and ignorance.
6. The words that the Prophet(,%)--said to his uncle Abu Taalib, and
his rejection of the wealth and kingship offered to him by Quraysh,
point to the sincerity of his claim to Prophethood and his keenness to

Lessons to be learned 55
guide the people. By the same token, the daa 'iyah should be
determined that his call should continue, no matter how many people
gang up on him. He should ignore the followers of falsehood who
tempt him with offers of position and status. Striving for the sake of
the truth brings the believers peace of mind and contentment. The
pleasure of Allah, the Exalted, the Almighty, and His Paradise are
more precious to them than all the positions, status and wealth of this
world.
7. The daa 'iyhshould meet with his supporters at intervals each day
or each week, to increase their faith in the call and to teach them its
ways, means and etiquette. If he fears that some danger may befall
himself or his group if he meets with them openly, then he must meet
with them in secret, lest the followers of falsehood find out about
them and destroy all of them, or increase their persecution against
them.
8. The daa'iyah must pay attention to his relatives, and convey to
them the call for reform. If they turn away, he will have an excuse
before Allah and before people for the corruption and misguidance
that they are following.
9. If the dau 'iyuh finds out that his group is in deadly danger or that
their beliefs are exposed to fitnah (trial), then he must prepare for
them a place where they can be safe from the enmity of the followers
of falsehood. This is not contrary to the daa 'iyahk obligation to be
prepared to sacrifice himself. For if the daa'iyahs are few, the
followers of falsehood could finish them off with one blow and put
an end to their call. If the daa 'ipahs are in a safe place, this guarantees
that the da 'wah will continue to spread.
10. The fact that the Prophet (27)told his Cornpanions to migrate to
Abyssinia twice, indicates that the relationship between religious
people, despite the differences in their religions, is stronger than their
ties to idol-worshippers and atheists. For the divinely-revealed

56 From the Beginning of Prophethood
religions -in their true and original foms --share the same social
goals, as well as belief in God and His Prophets and the Last Day.
This is what makes the ties among them stronger than any ties of
kinship. blood or nationality with atheists, idol worshippers and those
who disbelieve in the laws of Allah.
11. The followers of falsehood will not give in easily to the people of
truth. E~rerytime they fail in one means of resisting and defeating the
call to truth, they will come up with something else. This is how it
will continue until truth attains its final victory and falsehood is
finally defeated.

CHAPTER THREE
FROM THE MIGRATION TO ABYSSINIA
UNTIL THE MIGRATION TO MADEENAH
HISTORICAL EVENTS
During this period the following important events took place:
1. Abu Taalib, the paternal uncle of the Prophet (&, died in the tenth
year of the Prophet's mission. During his life he was a strong
defender of his nephew, the Messenger of Allah (g).Quraysh could
not do any ham to the Prophet so long as Abu Taalib was still alive,
out of respect to him. But when Abu Taalib died, Quraysh were able
to increase their persecution of the Prophet. Hence, his death was a
source of deep grief for the Prophet. The Prophet was keen that Abu
Taalib should speak the words of Islam on his deathbed, but Abu
Taalib refused, fearing that it would be a cause of his people speaking
ill of him.
2. Khadeejah ($<) died in the same year. She had eased the worries
of the Prophet and the grief he felt at the persecution of Quraysh.
When she died, he grieved deeply for her. The year in which his uncle
Abu Taalib and his wife Khadeejah died is known as the Year of
Grief.
3. When the persecution of Quraysh intensified following the death
of his uncle and his wife, the Prophet (kz)went to At-Ta'if, hoping
that (the tribe of) Thaqeef would listen to him and support him. But
they rejected him in an unpleasant manner and incited their sons to
throw stones at him until blood flowed from his feet. Then he sought

58 From the Migration to Abyssinia
refuge in one of the gardens of At-Ta'if and offered the following
humble supplication to Allah:
"0' Allah, to You do I complain of the my weakness,
little resource and lowliness before men. 0' Most
Merciful of those who show mercy, You are the Lord of
the weak and You are my Lord. To whom will You leave
me? To a far-off stranger who will mistreat me? Or to an
enemy to whom You have granted power over me? If
You are not angry with me, I care not, but Your favour is
better for me. I seek refbge in the Light of Your
Countenance by which the darkness is illumined and the
things of this world and the next are set aright, lest Your
anger descend upon me or Your wrath light upon me. It
is You Whom we beseech until You are well pleased.
There is no power and no strength except in You."
4. The Prophet (g)came back from A!-Ta'if without Thaqeef
responding to his call, apart from 'Addaas, the slave of 'Utbah and
Shaybah, the sons of Rabee'ah. He was a Christian slave whose
masters told him to offer a bunch of grapes to the Messenger (:g)
when he was in the garden, because they saw that he was exhausted
after Thaqeef had attacked him. When 'Addaas offered the grapes to
the Messenger (e,),he took them and started eating them, saying,
"Bismillah." This attracted the attention of 'Addaas, because he had
never seen anyone saying anything like this. After they spoke for a
while, 'Addaas became Muslim.
5. The miracle of the Ism ' and Mi 'i-aaj(night journey and ascent into
heaven) took place. There was some difference of opinion among the
scholars as to when it occurred, but it is certain that it happened
before the Hijvah, in the tenth year of the Prophet's mission or later.
The correct view of the majority of scholars, is that it happened in one
night. when the Prophet (pe)was awake, and it happened to him in

H~storicalevents 59
body and soul. He was taken by night from Al--Vasjidai-Haraam (in
Makkah) to Al-Masjid ul-Aqsa (in Jerusalem). Then he was taken up
into the highest heavens, and came back to his house in Makkah on
the same night. He told Quraysh about the miracle, but they mocked
him and made fun of him, but Abu Bakr and those who had strong
faith believed him.
6. On that night, the prayer was made obligatory, five prayers each
day for every adult, sane Muslim.
7. Whilst the Prophet (%A)was passing among the tribes on the
occasion of Hajj -as was his custom every year -to call them to
Islam and to give up idol-worship, he was at Al-'Aqabah where the
Jamaraat are stoned, when he met a group from Al-Aws and Al-
Khazraj (tribes from Madeenah). He called them to Islam and they
became Muslims. There were seven of them, who returned to
Madeenah and told their people about their meeting with the Prophet
(-s)and their conversion to Islam.
8. The following year, in the twelfth year of his mission, twelve men
of the Ansaar (Madeenan Supporters of the Prophet) came during the
Hajj season and met with the Prophet (g?)and swore allegiance to
him. When they went back, the Prophet (3%)-, sent Mus'ab ibn 'Urnayr
with them to Madeenah, to teach the Muslims the Qur'an and Islam,
after which Tslam spread far and wide in Madeenah.
9. In the following year, a group of Ansaar came to Hajj and met with
the Prophet (:&)--, in secret. There were seventy men and two women.
They swore their allegiance to him and promised to support him and
to protect him as they protected their own wives and children. Then
they went back to Madeenah after he chose from among them twelve
men to be leaders of their people.

60 From the Migration to Abyssinia
LESSONS TO BE LEARNED
1. The daa 'ivahmay be protected by one of his relatives who do not
follow his call, because that is in the interest of the call when it is in a
position of weakness, and this protects the life of the ha '&ah. The
protection of the daa 'ivahb tribe or family may be of benefit to the
daa 'Q~ahand his call, so long as he does not approve of or support
their evil.
2. A righteous wife who believes in the call to truth may relieve many
of the difficulties faced by her dau'iyah husband if she shares his
concerns and suffering. In this manner, she can reduce his burden of
stress and encourage him to continue and remain steadfast, thus
playing a role in the success of the call. The attitude of Khadeejah
(,,-,+) in supporting the Messenger of Allah (&?) is the best example of
the great role that a believing wife may play in the success of her
husband's da 'wah work, and in making him steadfast and helping
him to continue his cla'wah. The loss of such a wife, when the
struggle to reform is at its most intense, is an immense loss which
inevitably fills the husband with grief and sorrow.
3. Grief for the loss of a relative who was protecting the call to truth
even though he did not believe in it, and for the loss of a sincerely
believing wife, is a natural result of sincere devotion to the call and of
sincerity towards the wife whose sacrifice and support were
exemplary. Hence, when Abu Taalib died, the Messenger (23)said:
"May Allah have mercy upon you and forgive you. I
will keep on praying for forgiveness for you until Allah
forbids me to do so.''
The Muslims followed the example of their Prophet (:,ST).-. and prayed
for forgiveness for deceased nzushvik family members, until Allah
revealed the words:

Lessons to be learned 6 7
"It is not [pr.oper]Ji)rthe Prophet alzd t/~ose~1hobelieve
to ask Allah :F fi>~give~zessfor the Mushrikeen, even
though they be of kin, after it has becorne clear.to them
that t/zej.are the dweller-sof the Fire (because they died
ilz a state qf'disbelief.'" fQur'an 9: 113)
So the Prophet (;=)stopped praying for forgiveness for Abu Taalib,
and the Muslims stopped praying for forgiveness for their deceased
relatives.
The Messenger (%) continued for the rest of his life to mention the
virtues of Khadeejah, to pray for mercy for her, and to honour her
friends, so much so that 'Aa'ishah felt jealous of her -even though
she was dead -because she so often heard the Prophet praising her.
Bukhari narrated that 'Aa'ishah (;&)I-said:
"I never felt asjealous of any of the wives of the Prophet
as T did of Khadeejah, although 1never saw her. But the
Prophet mentioned her a great deal, and sometimes he
would slaughter a sheep, cut it up and distribute it
among the friends of Khadeejah. Once I said to him, 'It
is as if there is no one in this world but Khadeejah,' and
he said, 'She was like that and like that (mentioning
good things about her), and 1had children from her."'
4. The fact that the Prophet went to At-Ta'if after the people of
Makkah had turned away from him, indicates that he was detennined
that the call should continue and that he had not given up hope that
the people would respond. So he looked for new territory for his call
after the barriers had gone up in the first territory. The fact that

62 From the Migration to Abyssinia
Thaqeef incited their children and fools against the Messenger
indicates that the nature of evil is the same, no matter where it occurs,
which is to use the foolish to attack those who advocate good. The
flowing of blood from the feet of the Prophet, when he was a noble
Prophet, is the greatest example of the harm and persecution that the
daa 'iyah may face for the sake of Allah. The prayer of the Prophet in
the garden uttering those immortal words, is confirmation of the truth
of his mission and his determination to continue his efforts, no matter
what difficulties lay in his path. It demonstrates that his only concern
was the pleasure of Allah, and that he did not care about the approval
of leaders or of the simple-minded common folk. "If You are not
angry with me, I care not." It also demonstrates that he was seeking
strength from Allah by turning to Him and seeking strength fi-om
Him when the persecution grew intense. And it illustrates the fact that
the daa '&ahSprimary fear must be of the wrath and anger of Allah,
not the wrath and anger of anyone else.
5. The miracle of the 1sp.a' and Mi 'raaj teaches us many things, of
which we will mention just three here:
5.a It shows us that Al-Masjid al-Aqsa (the Farthest Mosque) and the
land around it -Palestine -is part of the Muslim world because of
the strong connection between Jerusalem and Makkah which became
the center of the Muslim world and the focal point of its unity after
the mission of the Prophet (g?).Defending Palestine means
defending Islam itself, so every Muslim must undertake to defend it,
no matter where in the world he lives. Neglect with regard to
defending it and liberating it is neglecting an aspect of Islam and is a
sin for which Allah will punish every negligent believer in Allah and
His Messenger.
5.b It is a symbol of the high ambition that every Muslim should
have, and how he should rise above the whims and desires of this
world, and be distinct from all others in his high status, lofty goals
and continual pursuit of the highest example.

Lessons to be learned 63
5.c It also indicates that it is possible to explore space and move
beyond the gravitational pull of the earth. During the isra' and
Mi 'raaj, our Messenger was the first space explorer in the history of
the entire universe. Exploring space and returning safely to earth is
something that is possible. It happened to the Messenger of Allah
(25)-! by means of a miracle at his time, but it can happen to people
now by means of science.
6. The fact that prayer was enjoined on the night of the ha' and
Mi 'raaj points to the reason why prayer is enjoined. It is as if Allah is
saying to His believing slaves: If the ascent of your Messenger's
body and soul into the heavens was a miracle, then you can ascend
five times every day as your hearts and souls ascend to Me, so you
may ascend spiritually which will enable you to rise above your
whims and desires, and bear witness to ME-greatness, Might and
Oneness, which will motivate you to seek control of the earth, not by
means of enslaving, force and conquest, but by means of goodness
and noble character, by means of purification and sublime
characteristics, by means of prayer.
7, The Prophet's custom of presenting his da '~z-ahto the tribes during
the Hajj season indicates that the daa'iyalz should not limit his
da 'wah efforts to his own gatherings and environment, but he should
go to every place where people gather or where they might gather. He
should not despair if they turn away fi-om him! time and time again,
for Allah will provide him with supporters who believe in his call
from a place that he could never think of or imagine. The small
number of people who follow him on some occasions may play a
great role in spreading the call of truth and goodness, and in attaining
the ultimate victory over evil and its supporters. The conversion of
the first seven of the Ansaar who met the Messenger of Allah for the
first time led to the introduction of Islam in Madeenah, and that
introduction led to the spread of Islam in that city, and paved the way

64 From the Migration to Abyssinia
for the persecuted believers in Makkah to find in Madeenah a place to
which they could migrate and gather. It gave the Messenger of Allah
a safe haven, where he could establish his state and from which he
could spread his call, and his Companions could set out to combat
shirk (polytheism), and the mushrikeen in wars and battles which
ultimately resulted in victory for Islam, and in eternal defeat for shirk.
May Allah be pleased with the Ansaar of Aws and Khazraj who did
so much good for Islam and the Muslims, and may Allah be pleased
with their brethren the -Wuhaajiveen (emigrants) who believed before
them and sacrificed their most precious wealth and forsook their
homeland for the sake of Islam. May He join us with them all in the
Paradise of Ar-Radwacrn.

CHAPTER FOUR
FROM THE HIjRAH UNTIL THE PROPHET
SETTLED IN MADEENAH
HISTORICAL EVENTS
1. Quraysh found out that some people from Yathrib (Madeenah) had
become Muslims, so they intensified their persecution of the
believers in Makkah. The Prophet (~Az)commanded them to migrate
to Madeenah, so they migrated in secret, apart from 'Umar (&$,) who
announced to the mushrikeen of Quraysh that he was leaving, and
said to them, "Whoever wants his mother to be bereft of him, let him
catch up with me tomorrow in the bottom of this valley," but no one
set out in pursuit of him.
2. When Quraysh found out for sure that the Muslims were being
honoured and protected in Madeenah, they met together in the Daar
an-Nadwah to plan how they would kill the Messenger himself. They
agreed to choose a strong young man from each tribe, then they
would all kill him together. In this way the responsibility would be
shared among all the tribes and Banu Manaaf would not be able to
fight all of them, so they would have to accept the diyah (blood
money). So the young men who were charged with the killing of the
Messenger (a?)=.--A met at his door on the night of the Hijrah, waiting for
him to come out so that they could kill him.
3. The Messenger did not sleep in his own bed that night. He
asked 'Ali (&$ j to sleep in his bed, and told him that, the following
morning, he should return the items that the h-uffuar., of Quraysh had

66 From the Hijrah until the Prophet settled in Madeenah
entrusted to him for safekeeping to their owners. Then the Prophet
left his house without his would-be assassins seeing him, and he went
to the house of Abu Bakr (&&), who had already prepared two
mounts for himself and for the Messenger (.p).Abu Bakr had hired
'Abdullah ibn Urayqit ad-Diyali, who was a mushrik, to act as their
guide, telling him to avoid the usual route to Madeenah and follow
another route that the kuffnar of Quraysh did not know.
4. The Messenger of Allah and his Companion Abu Bakr set out on
Thursday 1st Rabee' al-Awwal, when the Prophet was fifty-three
years old. No one knew about his Hijrah except for 'Ali (&) and the
family of Abu Bakr. 'Aa'ishah and Asrna', the daughters of Abu
Bakr, prepared food for their journey, and Asma' tore a piece from
her ni@aq (waist-wrapper) and used it to tie up the vessel of food,
hence she was given the nickname ofDhaat an-Nitaaqayn (she of the
two waist-wrappers). They set out with their guide in the direction of
Yemen, until they reached the cave of Thawr, in which they stayed
for three nights, and 'Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr stayed with them. He
was an intelligent young man who was quick to grasp things. He
would leave them before dawn and spend the mornings with Quraysh
in Makkah as if he had slept among them. He did not hear of any plot
that Quraysh planned against them but he understood it, and he
would go to them in the evening and tell them about it.
5. Quraysh got very upset when the Messenger escaped
assassination, so they went out in pursuit of him, following the usual
routes, but they did not find him. Then they tried the road towards
Yemen, and stood at the mouth of the cave of Thawr. One of them
said, "Perhaps he and his companion are in this cave," but the others
replied by saying, "Do you not see that a spider has woven its webs
over the mouth of the cave, and there are birds nesting there, which
shows that no one has entered this cave for a long time." Abu Bakr
could see their feet when they were standing at the mouth of the cave,

Histor~calevents 67
and he feared for the life of the Messenger. He said to him, "By Allah,
0' Messenger of Allah, if one of them looks down at his feet he will
see us." The Messenger put his mind at resr by saying,
"0' Abu Bakr, what do you think of two when Allah is
the third one with them?"
6. Quraysh sent word to the tribes encouraging them to look for the
Messenger and his Companion, and to kill them or capture them by
offering a huge amount of money as an enticement. Suraaqah ibn
Ja'sham wanted that prize, so he decided to keep looking for them.
7. After the search for the Messenger of Allah (&) and his
Companions was called off, they came out of the cave with their
guide and headed towards the coast -i.e., the coast of the Red Sea.
After they had traveled a long distance, Suraaqah caught up with
them, but when he get closer, his horse's feet sank into the sand, and
he could not go on. He tried three times to make his horse move
towards the Messenger, but it refused. At that point, he became sure
that the one in front of him was a noble Messenger, so he asked the
Messenger to promise him something if he supported him. The
Messenger promised to let him wear the two armbands of Chosroes.
Then Suraaqah returned to Makkah, and pretended that he had not
found anyone.
8. The Messenger and his Companion reached Madeenah on the
twelfth day of Rabee' al-Awwal, after the people of the city had
waited for a long time, going out each morning to the heights
overlooking the city, and not coming back until the sun became hot at
noon. When they saw him, they rejoiced greatly, and the little girls
began to sing:
"Tala 'a al-hadvu blaj~na... The full moon has risen upon us
from the valley of Al-Wadaa'
We must be grateful so long as the caller calls us to Allah.

68 From the Hijrah until the Prophet settled in Madeenah
0' you who have been sent among us, you have come with a
command that must be obeyed."
9. When the Messenger was on his way to Madeenah, he reached
Quba' which is a village two miles to the south of Madeenah. There
he lay the foundations for the first mosque to be built in Islam. He
stayed there for four days, then on Friday morning, he went on to
Madeenah. The time for Jumu 'ah (Friday) prayer came when he was
among Banu Saalim ibn 'Awf, so he built a mosque there, where the
first Jumu'ah prayers in Islam were held, and the first khutbah
(sermon) in Islam was delivered. Then he went on to Madeenah, and
the first thing he did when he arrived was to choose the place where
his she-camel sat down to be his mosque. The place belonged to two
orphans among the Ansaar. He wanted to negotiate the price with
them, and they said, "No, we will give it to you, 0' Messenger of
Allah." But he insisted on buying it from them for ten dinars of gold
which he paid from the wealth of Abu Bakr. Then he urged the
Muslims to join him in building the mosque, and they hastened to do
so. He (g3)carried bricks with them, until the mosque was built, with
its walls made of bricks and its roof made of palm leaves resting on
palm trunks.
10. Then he established brotherhood between the Muhaajireen and
the Ansaar. He gave each Ansaari a brother from among the
Muhaajireen. So each Ansaari took his Muhaajir brother to his house
and offered to share with him everything that he had in his house.
1 1. Then the Messenger of Allah wrote a covenant between the
Mzshaujireen and the Ansaar, in which he made a friendly agreement
with the Jews and assured them in their religion and property. Ibn
Hishaam quotes this document at length in his Seerah. It set out the
principles on which the first Muslim state was established, and it
contains principles of humanity, social justice, religious tolerance
and cooperation in the interest of society, that every student should
study, seek to understand and memorize.

Historical events 69
Here we will list the general principles that this historical document
included:
11.1 The Muslim ummah should be united and undivided.
11.2 The members of the ummah are equal in rights and honour.
11.3 The umrnah should stand firm against evildoing, sin and
transgression.
11.4 The ummah should reach an agreement as to how its enemies are
to be dealt with, and no believer should make a peace treaty without
consulting other believers.
11.5 The society is to be based on the best, most correct and strongest
system.
1 1.6 Those who rebel against the state and its public systems should
be fought and not supported.
11.7 Those who want to live with the Muslims in a cooperative and
peaceful manner should be protected, and they should not be
oppressed or harmed.
11.8 Non-Muslims have the right to their own religion and their
wealth. They should not be forced to embrace Islam, and their wealth
should not be taken from them.
11.9 Non-Muslims should contribute to the expenses of the state just
as Muslims do.
11.10 Non-Muslims should cooperate with the Muslims in warding
off threats to the state from all enemies.
1 1.11 They should contribute to the state's defence budget so long as
it is in a state of war.
11.12 The state must help those (non-Muslims) who are oppressed,
just as it must help every Muslim who is the victim of aggression.

70 From the Hijrah until the Prophet settled in Madeenah
11.13 The Muslims and others must refrain from protecting the
enemies of the state and those who help them.
11.14 If the interests of the ummah are best served by a peace treaty,
then all the subjects of the state, Muslims and non-Muslims alike,
must accept that peace treaty.
11.15 No person is to be taken to task for the sin of another, and the
offender harms no one except himself and his family.
11.16 Freedom of movement within the state and to areas outside it is
guaranteed and protected by the state.
11.17 No protection is to be given to a sinner or wrongdoer.
11.18 The society is based on a foundation of cooperation in
righteousness and piety, not in sin and transgression.
These principles are supported and protected by the people's belief in
Allah, and their awareness that He is watching, and that He takes care
of those who are sincere and honest, and by the head of the state
represented by Muhammad (&.
LESSONS TO BE LEARNED
1. If the believer is sure of his strength, he does not hide what he is
doing, rather he does it openly, and he does not pay any attention to
his enemies so long as he is confident that he can prevail over them.
This is what 'Umar (4~)did when he migrated. This also indicates
that a position of strength frightens the enemies of Allah, because if
they had wanted to gang up and kill 'Umar, they could undoubtedly
have done so, but 'Umar's audacious attitude cast fear into the heart
of each and every one of them, so each of them feared that his mother
would be bereft of him. The followers of evil fear for their lives and
are anxious to preserve them.

Lessons to be learned 71
2. When the followers of falsehood despair of putting a stop to the
call of truth and reform, and when the believers escape from their
clutches and find a place where they can be safe from their enemies,
they ultimately resort to killing the daa 'iyah and reformer, thinking
that if they kill him they will get rid of him and silence his call. This is
how the evil enemies of reform in every age think, and we have seen
and witnessed such things in our own times.
3. The believer who is sincere towards the call for reform is prepared
to sacrifice his life for his leader, because if the leader is safe, then the
call is safe, but if he is killed, then the call will weaken. What 'Ali
(&J) did on the night of the eijvah, sleeping that night in the
Prophet's bed, meant that he was willing to sacrifice his own life so
that the Messenger of Allah (ky)would remain alive, for the swords
of the young men of Quraysh would have come down on 'Ali's head,
seeking vengeance upon him, because he had made it easy for the
Messenger of Allah to escape. But 'Ali did not even think about that;
it was sufficient for him to ensure that the Messenger of Allah, the
Prophet of this ummah and the leader of the da 'wah,would be safe.
4. The fact that the mushvikoon had left items for safekeeping with
the Messenger of Allah (&), even though they were fighting him and
were determined to kill him, indicates that the enemies of reform are
certain in their hearts that the daa 'iyah is righteous, trustworthy and
honest, and that he is better than them in his conduct and attitude and
purer in heart, but their blindness, stubbornness and insistence on
clinging to tradition and misguided beliefs is what makes them fight
him, plot against him and conspire to kill him if they can find a way
to do so.
5. If the leader of da 'wah, the head of state or the leader of a reform
movement thinks of escaping the conspiracy of those who lie in wait
for him, and he forms an effective escape plan so that he can regroup
and resume his da 'wah efforts from a stronger base elsewhere, this is

72 From the Hijrah until the Prophet settled in Madeenah
not to be regarded as cowardice, fleeing from death or being
unwilling to sacrifice himself.
6. The attitude of 'Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr confirms the effect that the
youth may have on the success of da 'wah efforts, for they are the
pillar of every call for reform. Through their willingness to sacrifice
themselves, the call may quickly advance towards victory. We see
that the first believers to embrace Islam were all young. The
Messenger of Allah (k3)was forty years old when his mission began,
and Abu Bakr (&A)was three years younger than him. 'Umar (#$)
was younger than both of them, and 'Ali (e&)was the youngest of
them all. 'Uthmaan (As.),e4 was younger than the Messenger of Allah,
as were 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ood, 'Abdur-Rahmaan ibn 'Awf, Al-
Arqam ibn Abi al-Arqam, Sa'eed ibn Zayd, Bilaal ibn Rabaah,
'Ammaar ibn Yaasir and others. All of them were young men, who
shouldered the burdens of da 'wah and made sacrifices for its sake,
finding sweetness in the torture, pain and death that they encountered
for the sake of the da Lvah. Through these people Islam prevailed,
and through their efforts and the efforts of their brethren the state of
the Rightly-Guided Caliphs was established, and the Islamic
conquests were achieved. By virtue of these people Islam reached us,
by means of which Allah freed us from ignorance, misguidance,
idolatry, kefi. and immorality.
7. The attitude of 'Aa'ishah and Asma' (may Allah be pleased with
them both) during the Hijrah demonstrates that reform movements
also need women, for they are soft-hearted, more motivated, more
tolerant and better at heart. If a woman believes in something she will
not care about any difficulties involved in spreadingthe message and
calling people to it. She will strive to convince her husband and
sisters and children of it. Women have a glowing history of jihad for
the sake of Islam at the time of the Messenger (*y), which
demonstrates to us today that the Islamic refom movement will

Lessons to be learned 73
make little progress and will have little effect on society unless
women are involved in it and raise a generation of girls with faith,
good morals, chastity and purity. Women are more able than men to
spread these values which are needed among women in society
nowadays, because they will be wives and mothers. The Muslim
women played a major role in raising the children of the Tahaahah
and then the Taabi 'een with the morals and manners of Islam, loving
Islam and its Messenger, so that they were the noblest generations
that history has ever known, with the highest ambitions, most
righteous way of life and the highest achievements in this world and
in the Hereafter.
We have to understand this fact nowadays, and strive to ensure that
our young women and wives carry the banner of the call for Islamic
reform among women. For women form more than half of the
ummah, which means that we must encourage our daughters and
sisters to learn shari'ah in trustworthy institutions that teach Islam
properly, such as the colleges of shari'ah in our universities. The
more girls there are with a sound know-ledge of Islam, better
understanding of shari'ah, well versed in the history of Islam, with
love to Allah and the Messenger of Allah (s),and adopting the
attitude of the Prophet and of the Mothers of the Believers, the more
we will be able to give the reform movement a strong push and bring
closer the day when our Muslim society will submit to the rulings and
shari'ah of Islam, for that will indeed come to pass, in sha' Allah.
8. The fact that the mushrikoon were unable to see the Messenger of
Allah (ky)and his Companion in the cave of Thawr when they were
standing near it, and the narrative which tells us how the spider had
built its web and the bird was nesting at the mouth of the cave,
represent a deeply moving story of how Allah cares for His
Messengers, daa'iyahs and loved ones. Out of mercy towards His
slaves, Allah would not allow His Messenger (&) to fall into the

74 From the Hijrah until the Prophet settled in Madeenah
clutches of the mushrikeen so that they could kill him and put a stop
to his call, when he was the one whom He had sent as a mercy to the
worlds. Similarly, Allah will take care of His sincere slaves and
callers at times of crisis and hardship, and He will save them at times
of difficulty. He will often make the eyes of those who lie in wait to
harm them and betray them blind, so that they do not see them. There
is nothing in the story of how the Prophet and his Companion were
saved after they were surrounded by the mushrikeen in the cave of
Thawr except confirmation of the words of Allah:
'Indeed, We will support Our Messengers and those
who believe during the life of this world and on the Day
when the witnesses will stand [i.e. Day of
Resurrection]-" (Qur 'an 40: 51)
"Truly, Allah defends those who believe...,)
(Qur 'an 22: 38)
9. Abu Bakr's fear that the mushrikoon would see them in the cave is
an example of how the sincere follower should be with his leader
when they are surrounded by danger: he should express fear for his
leader's life. At that point, Abu Bakr was not worried about his own
life; if that were the case, he would not have accompanied the
Messenger of Allah (z5)on this dangerous journey, when he knew
that the least punishment he would incur if the mushrikoon caught
him with the Messenger of Allah would be death. Rather, he feared
for the life of the Messenger of Allah and for the future of Islam if the
Messenger (%%)fell into the clutches of the mushrikeen.

Lessonstobelearned 75
10. The Prophet's answer to Abu Bakr, reassuring him with the
words, "0' Abu Bakr, what do you think of two when Allah is the
third one with them?" is an example of the most sincere trust in Allah
and of assurance of His support, putting one's trust in Him at times of
hardship. This is a clear indication of the truthfklness of the
Messenger's claim to Prophethood, for in the deepest crisis he
nevertheless showed signs of reassurance that Allah had sent him as a
guidance and a mercy to mankind, and He would not forsake him at
that moment. Do you see such reassurance in the heart of those who
pretend to be prophets? In such situations there is a clear difference
between those who truly call for reform and those who merely claim
to do so in their own personal interests. The hearts of the former are
always overflowing with faith in Allah and confidence that He will
support them, whereas the latter collapse at times of fear and
difficulty,then you see that they have no support or help from Allah.
11. From the attitude of Suraaqah, when he caught up with the
Messenger (&) and was unable to reach him, we see another sign of
the Prophethood of the Messenger (&). For the legs of Suraaqah's
horse sank into the sand when it faced towards the Messenger (+%I,-:
until Suraaqah dismounted and turned it to face towards Makkah,
whereupon it regained its poise. But when he tried to turn it back
towards the Messenger (gy) it became helpless again. Do you think
that this would happen to anyone but a Prophet who was sent and
supported by Allah? No. This is what Suraaqah realized, so he called
to the Prophet (%) telling him that he would not harm him. He
understood that the Messenger (&) had divine protection which
meant that no human power could reach him. So he accepted the loss
of the prize (offered by Quraysh) and gained the promise (from the
Messenger of Allah).
12. The fact that the Messenger of Allah (sL)promised Suraaqah the
armbands of Chosroes is another miracle. A man who seems to be

76 From the Hijrah until the Prophet settled in Madeenah
fleeing from his people would not hope to conquer Persia and seize
the treasure of Chosroes, unless he was a Prophet sent by Allah. The
promise of the Messenger (g~)was fulfilled. Suraaqah asked 'Umar
ibn al-Khaflaab to fulfil the Prophet's promise to him when he saw
the armbands of Chosroes among the war-booty. 'Umar put them on
Suraaqah in the presence of a group of the Sahaabah, and said,
"Praise be to Allah, Who has divested Chosroes of his armbands and
given them to the Bedouin Suraaqah ibn Ja'sham to wear." Thus, the
miracles of this migration came one after another, to increase the faith
of the believers and to reassure those among the People of the Book
who were uncertain that he was indeed a Messenger from the Lord of
the Worlds.
13. The rejoicing of the believers who lived in Yathrib, Ansaar and
Muhaajiueen alike, at the safe arrival of the Messenger of Allah (gy)
was such that it made the women and children come out of their
houses, and made the men leave their work. The attitude of the Jews
of Madeenah was such that they shared the people's joy outwardly,
but inwardly they were upset about the competition of this new
leadership. The joy of the believers at meeting their Messenger
comes as no surprise, because he is the one who led them forth from
darkness into light by their Lord's leave, and guided them to the
Straight Path of Allah, the Almighty and Praiseworthy. But there is
nothing strange about the attitude of the Jews either, because they are
known for their flattery and hypocrisy towards the society over which
they lose control, and for their resentment and deep hatred of those
who strip them of their leadership over the gentiles and prevent them
from earning wealth in the name of making loans and shedding
gentile blood in the name of offering sincere consultation. The Jews
still hate all those who try to free the people from their control, and
they move from hatred to conspiracies and plots, and thence to
assassination if they are able. This is their way and their nature, and
they did something like this to the Messenger (+)--after he settled in

Lessons to be learned 77
Madeenah, despite the treaty of cooperation and peaceful coexistence
that had been drawn up between him and them. But the Jews are a
people who always fan the flames of war, and,
"... Every timethey [the Jews] kindled the .fire of war;
Allah extinguished it..." (Qur'an 5: 64)
14. From the events of the Hijvah we see that whenever the Prophet
(ST) stopped in a place, the first thing he did was to establish a
mosque in which the believers could gather. He established the
mosque of Quba' when he stayed there for four days, and he built a
mosque halfivay between Quba' and Madeenah when the time for
Jumu 'ah came, in (the lands of) Banu Saalim ibn 'Awf, at the bottom
of Wadi Ranoona'.
When he reached Madeenah, the first thing he did was to build a
mosque there.
This points to the importance of the mosque in Islam. The acts of
worship in lslam all puri& the heart, improve one's attitude and
strengthen the ties among Muslims. Prayer in congregation and
Jumu 'ah and 'Eid prayers are a strong manifestation of unity among
Muslims, their common aims and their cooperation in righteousness
and piety. Undoubtedly, the mosque plays an important social and
spiritual role in the lives of Muslims, for it unifies their ranks, purifies
their souls, awakens their hearts and minds, solves their problems and
is a place where their strength and solidarity are made manifest.
The history of the mosque in lslam confirms that from the mosque the
troops of the Islamic army set out to fill the world with Allah's
guidance. From it shone forth the rays of guidance for the Muslims
and others. In the mosque, the seeds of Islamic civilization grew and

78 From the Hurah until the Prophet settled in Madeenah
flourished. Were Abu Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthmaan, 'Ali, Khaalid, Sa'd,
Abu 'Ubaydah and other great figures of Islamic history anything
other than students of the "Muhammadan school" whose seatwas the
Mosque of the Prophet (.&?
Another distinguishing feature of the mosque in Islam is that every
week there comes from it the word of truth, resounding from the lips
of the khateeb (preacher), denouncing evil or enjoining good, calling
people to goodness or rousing them from negligence, calling them to
unite or protesting against evildoers or warning against oppression.
In childhood, we saw how the mosques were focal points of national
movements against the French colonialists, where the leaders ofjihad
against imperialism and Zionism would seek refuge. If we see that
the mosques nowadays are not playing their great role, that is only
because of the sin of some mercenary khateebs, or khateebs who are
ignorant and careless. The day when strong daa 'iyahs who are well
versed in shari'ah, sincere towards Allah and His Messenger, and
towards the leaders of the Muslims and their common folk, ascend
the minbars (pulpits) and stand in the rnihrabs (prayer niche), then
the mosques in our Muslim societies will return to their leading role
among our social institutions, and will once again be doing their job
of educating men, producing heroes, correcting what is wrong,
fighting evil and building society on the basis of piety, fearing Allah
and seeking His pleasure.
We hope that this will happen when the brave pioneers among our
believing youth, who have confidence in the religion of Allah and
follow the way of the Messenger of Allah (&, occupy the minbars
of the mosques and direct their activities.
15. The bonds of brotherhood which the Messenger of Allah (&>)
established between the Muhaajireen and the Ansaar is one of the
strongest manifestations of the constructive, moral and humane
justice of Islam. The Muhaajiroon were people who had left their

Lessons to be learned 79
wealth and their land for the sake of Allah. and they had come to
Madeenah with no worldly goods in their possession. The Ansaar
were rich people with their agriculture, wealth and industry. So each
person was to support his brother, sharing with him the ups and
downs of life, bringing him to stay in his house so long as there was
room for both of them, giving him half of his wealth so long as he had
no need of it. What social justice in the world can match this
brotherhood?
Those who deny that there is any social justice in Islam are people
who do not want the light of Islam to dazzle people's eyes and fill
their hearts; or else they are stubborn, inflexible people who do not
like any new terminology, even if people love that, and there is some
reference to it in Islam. Otherwise, how can we deny the concept of
social justice in Islam when we have this brotherhood which is
unique in history, which was established by the bringer of shari'ah,
Muhammad (&) himself, and applied under his supervision, on
which the first society and state that he built was based?
"... Glory be to You [O' Allah]! This is a great lie."
(Qur 'an 24: 16)
16. The document in which the Messenger (gy) established
brotherhood between the Muhaajireen and Ansaar, and cooperation
between Muslims and others, included a great deal of irrehtable
evidence that the Islamic state was based on social justice, and that
the basis of relationships between the Muslims and others is peace so
long as the latter choose peace, and that the principles of truth, justice
and cooperation in righteousness and piety for the good of the people
and protecting the society from the harm of the evildoers, are the
most prominent objectives of the Islamic state. Thus the Islamic state,
no matter where and in what era it is founded, will be based on the

80 From the Hijrah until the Prophet settled in Madeenah
soundest and most just of principles. Nowadays, it should also be
based on the noblest of principles on which nations are built and
under whose shade peoples may live. The efforts being made
nowadays to establish states in our Muslim societiesthat are based on
Islamic principles is work that is in accordance with the development
of human thought on the concept of the state, except that it will also
enable the Muslims to build one of the strongest, most perfect,
happiest and most sublime of societies.
No matter what the case, it is in our best interest to build our state on
the bases of Islam. If we fail to do so, that will only lead to our doom.
Islam does not persecute non-Muslims who live in a Muslim land; it
does not persecute them for their beliefs or deny them their rights. So
why should there be any fear of any Muslim state applying the laws
of Islam and implementing its rulings, which represent justice, truth,
strength, brotherhood and comprehensive social harmony based on
brotherhood, love and noble cooperation? We will never be rid of
imperialism unless we call for Islam, so let those who strive, strive for
this purpose.
"And if thepeople of the towns had believed andfeared
Allah, We would have opened for them blessings from
the heaven and the earth..." (Qur 'an 7: 96)
"And verily, this is My straight path, so follow it, and
fillow not [othevj paths, for they will separate you
away from His path ... 77 (Qur 'an 6: 153)

Lessons to be learned 81
E
3
, // ,"9., -
@ Ly, 5 ,-&5 // *Y ,'2 &J?> .-@-,y2 ...F
,,<A ,,,*/ c < 3 ,5/ 5 c$39 1 # // 7 ,,
&I J,d @ 4iil ~17-9jll & $%j.~
4 4
(T-Y : 70 C~~S~Iily) 4,, / ,
"... And whosoever fear.^ Allah, He will make awayjor
him to get out [porn every diffictllt;lq... And He will
provide him fiom [sources] he never-could imagine.
And whosoever-puts his trust in Allah, then He will
suflce him. Verily, Allah will accomplish his purpose.
Indeed Allah has set a measure .for all things."
(Qur 'an 65: 2-3)
"... and whosoeverfears Allah, He will make his matter
easy for him." (Qur 'an 65: 4)
"... and whosoeverfears Allah, He will expiatejiom him
his sins, and will enlarge his reward. "(Qur'an 65: 5)

CHAPTER FIVE
THE BATTLES OF THE PROPHET
HISTORICAL EVENTS
Hardly had the Prophet (kg) settled in Madeenah when the battles
began between him and Quraysh with their allies among the Arab
tribes. It is the convention among Muslim historians to call every
battle between the Muslims and the mushrikeen, at which the Prophet
(-s)himself was present, a ghanvah (military expedition), and every
skirmish between the two sides, at which the Messenger (g~)was not
present, a sariyah (raiding party). The number of battles at which the
Prophet (&)-I was present was twenty-six, and the number of raiding
parties he sent out was thirty-eight. Here we will discuss only the
most famous of his battles, the number of which is eleven.
1. The Battle ofBadr
This battle took place on the 17th of Ramadaan 2 AH. The reason for
it was that the Prophet (&%) had gone out with some of his
Companions to intercept a Quraysh caravan that was returning from
Syria to Makkah. He did not want to fight, but the caravan, which
was led by Abu Sufyaan, escaped after sending word to Quraysh to
mobilize troops to protect the caravan. So Quraysh sent out
approximately one thousand fighters, including six hundred men in
arrnour and one hundred horsemen in armour in addition to the
infantry who wore amour. There were also seven hundred camels,
and singers beating drums and singing songs insulting the Muslims.
The Muslim army numbered three hundred and thirteen or fourteen

men, most of whom were from among the Ansaar. They had with
them seventy camels and only two or three horses. Small groups took
it in turns to ride the camels. Before battle was joined, the Prophet
(~3)wanted to consult his Companions, especially the Ansaar, about
engaging in battle. The Muhaajiroon were in favour of fighting, and
spoke well. Then the Ansaar realized that he was waiting for them to
speak, so Sa'd ibn Mu'aadh, who was the leader of the Ansaar, said:
"0' Messenger of Allah, we believe in you, we declare
your truth, and we witness that what you have brought
is the truth, and we have given you our word and
agreement to hear and obey; so go where you wish, we
are with you. By Allah, if you were to ask us to cross
this sea and you plunged into it, we would plunge into it
with you, and not a man would stay behind. We do not
dislike the idea of meeting your enemy tomorrow. We
are experienced in war, trustworthy in combat. It may
well be that Allah will let us show you something which
will bring you joy, so take us along with Allah's
blessing." Others said likewise, and the Messenger was
delighted at that. Then he said, "Forward with the
blessings of Allah, and be of good cheer, for Allah has
promised me one of the two parties, either the caravan
or the army."
Then the Messenger of Allah (k:)went on until he reached the
closest water to Badr and camped there. Al-Hubaab ibn al-Mundhir
said to him, "0'Messenger of Allah, is this a place that Allah has
ordered you to occupy, so that we can neither advance nor withdraw
from it, or is it a matter of opinion and military tactics?" The
Messenger (&) replied. "Rather, it is a matter of opinion and military
tactics." Al-Hubaab pointed out that it would be better to go on to
another place that was more suitable and where the Muslims would

Historical events 85
be better able to cut off the water supply of Badr from the
mushrikeen. So the Messenger (ST) and his Companions got up and
went to the place that Al-Hubaab had suggested. They established
themselves there, then Sa'd ibn Mu'aadh suggested that a hut be built
for the Messenger behind the Muslim ranks. then if Allah granted
them victory, that would be what he wanted, but if the outcome were
otherwise, he would be able to mount his camel and go back to the
people in Madeenah. Sa'd said to him: "0'Prophet of Allah, there are
people who have stayed behind, and who are just as deeply attached
to you as we are. If they thought that you would be fighting, they
would not have stayed behind." The Prophet (g?)prayed for him,
and issued commands that a hut be built. When the two groups met,
the Messenger (ky)started to straighten the Muslim ranks,
encouraging them to fight and to seek martyrdom. He said,
"By the One in Whose hand is my soul, no man will
fight and be killed today, bearing that with patience and
seeking reward, advancing and not retreating, but Allah
will admit him to Paradise."
Then he went back to the hut, accompanied by Abu Bakr, and
guarded by Sa"d ibn Mu'aadh wielding his sword. The Prophet (%?)
started to pray, and among his supplications (du'aah) were the
words:
"0' Allah, I beseech You to fulfil Your promise. 0'
Allah, if this band (the believers who were fighting) are
destroyed, You will not be worshipped on earth."
He prostrated for a long time, until Abu Bakr said, "Enough; Allah
will fulfil His promise." Then the fighting grew intense, and the
battle ended in victory for the Muslims. Nearly seventy of the
mushrikeen were killed, including the worst of them, Abu Jahl and
some of their leaders, and nearly seventy of them were taken

86 The Battles of the Prophet
prisoners. The Prophet ordered that the dead should be buried, then
he returned to Madeenah and consulted his Companions as to what
should be done with the prisoners. 'Umar suggested killing them, but
Abu Bakr suggested ransoming them. The Messenger accepted Abu
Bakr7s suggestion, and the mushrikoon ransomed their people in
return for money.
Some verses of the Qur'an were revealed concerning the Battle of
Badr. Allah (4k)says in Soorat Aal 'Imraan:
"And Allah has already made you victorious at Badc
when you were a weak littleforce. So fear Allah much
that you may be grateful. [Remember] when you
[Muhammad] said to the believers, 'Is it not enoughfor
you that your Lord [Allah] should help you with three
thousand angels sent down? Yes, if you hold on to
patience and piety, and the enemy comes rushing at
you; your Lord will help you withJive thousand angels
having marks [of distinction]. 'Allah made it not but as
a message of good newsfor you and as an assurance to
your hearts. And there is no victory exceptfrom Allah,
the All-Mighty, the All-Rse. That He might cut off a
part of those who disbelieve, or expose them to infamy,
so that they retire fvustrated. " (Qur 'an 3: 123-127)

Historical events 87
And He (&k)sent down a rebuke to the Prophet (G)for accepting the
ransom of the prisoners:
"It is notfor a Prophet that he should haveprisoners of
war [and free them with ransom] until he had made a
great slaughter [among his enemies] in the land. You
desire the good of this world [i.e. the money of ransom
for.freeing the captives], but Allah desires For you] the
Hereafter And Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise. Were it not
a previous ordainment from Allah, a severe torment
would have touched you for what you took."
(Qur 'an 8: 67-68)
2.The Battle of Uhud
This battle took place on Saturday 15th Shawaal3 AH. The reason
for it was that Quraysh wanted to exact re-enge for the Battle of
Badr, so they kept on preparing until they were ready to attack the
Prophet (g)in Madeenah. Then they set out with three thousand
fighters, apart from the ~haabeesh~;among them there were seven
hundred men in arrnour and two hundred horsemen. They were
accompanied by seventeen women, including Hind bint 'Utbah the
wife of Abu Sufyaan, whose father had been killed on the day of
Badr. They travelled on until they reached the bottom of the valley in
front of Uhud (which is a high mountain two miles to the north of
They were named after a mountain outside of Makkah that was called
Hubaysh, and they were allies of Quraysh.

88 The Battles of the Prophet
Madeenah), facing Madeenah. The Messenger of Allah (&) and
some of the $'ahaabah thought that the Muslims should not go out to
meet them, rather they should stay in Madeenah, then if the
mushrikuun attacked them, they could repel them. But some of the
young Muslims and some of the Muhaajireen and Ansaar -
especially those who had not been present at Badr and had not had
the honour of fighting on that day -were eager to go out and
confront them where they were. The Messenger (:&) agreed with
their opinion, and he went into his house and put on his amour, put
his shield on his back and picked up his spear, then he went out to the
Muslims with his sword by his side. Then those who had suggested
going out regretted having been the reason that he changed his mind,
and they said to the Messenger (s),
"We had no right to differ with you; do what you want,
or stay here if you want." The Messenger replied by
saying, "It is not befitting for a Prophet, once he has put
on his amour, to lay it aside until Allah decides
between him and his enemy."
Then he went out, accompanied by the Muslims, with approximately
one thousand troops among whom were one hundred annoured men
and horsemen.
When the Muslims gathered to go out, the Messenger saw a group of
Jews who wanted to go out with 'Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salool,the
leader of the hypocrites, willing to go out with the Muslims. The
Messenger of Allah (*) said:
"Have they become Muslims?" They said, "No, 0'
Messenger of Allah." He said, "Tell them to go back,
for we do not seek the help of mushrikeen against
mushrikeen. "
Halfway there, 'Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salool forsook the Muslims,
taking with him three hundred of the hypocrites, leaving the Muslims

Historical events 89
with only seven hundred men. The Prophet continued until he came
to the plain of Uhud, where he took up a position with his back to the
mountains, facing the mushrikeen. He drew his army up into ranks,
and appointed a leader for every group. He chose fifty archers, led by
'Abdullah ibn Jubayr al-Ansaari, to guard the Muslims' backs against
the mushrikeen sneaking up behind them, and he said to them:
"Guard our backs lest they attack us from behind; shoot
arrows at them because horses cannot put up with
arrows. We should continue to have the upper hand so
long as you stay in your positions. 0' Allah, bear
witness over them."
According to another report, he said,
"Even if you see birds snatching us, do not leave your
place here until I send for you. Even if you see us
defeating the people, or that we have prevailed and they
are dead, do not leave your places until I send for you."
Then the battle commenced, and Allah granted the Muslims victory
over their enemies, and they killed several of them. Then the enemy
turned and fled, and the Muslims were distracted by the booty which
they found in the mushrik camp. The archers who were behind them
saw that and said, "What are we doing here when Allah has granted
victory to His Messenger?" Then they decided to leave their
positions in order to get a share of the booty. Their leader 'Abdullah
ibn Jubayr reminded them of the Prophet's command, but they
replied that the battle had ended so there was no need to stay where
they were. 'Abdullah and ten others refbsed to leave their positions.
Khaalid ibn al-Waleed, who was leading the right flank of the
mushrik army, saw that the Muslims' back was no longer being
defended by the archers, so he attacked them from behind, and the
Muslims did not realize until the swords were slashing them here and

90 The Battles of the Prophet
there. Confusion overwhelmed them and it was rumoured that the
Messenger (gk) had been killed. Some of them fled back to
Madeenah, and the mushrikeen managed to reach the Messenger. He
was struck with rocks and fell unconscious. His face and knees were
cut, his lower lip was injured and his helmet was broken on his head.
Two circles of chain mail pierced his cheek. The mushrikoon
swarmed around the Messenger, seeking to kill him, but he stood
firm, and a group of the believers stood firm with him, among whom
was Abu Dujaanah who turned himself into a shield, protecting the
Messenger fkom the arrows of the mushrikeen with his own body,
with arrows raining down on his back. Another of them was Sabdibn
Abi Waqqaas, who shot almost one thousand arrows that day.
Another of them was Nusaybah Urnm 'Ammaarah al-Ansaariyah,
who stopped taking water to the wounded and started to fight with a
sword and shooting arrows to defend the Messenger of Allah, until
she received a deep wound in her neck. Her husband and two sons
were with her, and the Messenger of Allah (*) said to them, "What a
family, may Allah bless you." Nusaybah said to him, "Pray to Allah
that we will be with you in Paradise." He said, "0'Allah, cause them
to be with me in Paradise." Later on Nusaybah (14~)said: "I do not
care what happens to me in this world." The Prophet said concerning
her, "Wherever I looked on the day of Uhud, to the right and the left, I
saw her fighting for me." She received twelve wounds that day, from
blows with spears and swords.
At the height of the battle, Ubayy ibn Khalaf tried to get near to the
Prophet in order to kill him, and he swore that he would not give up
until he did it. The Prophet took a spear from one of the people near
him and struck him in the upper chest, which led to his death. This is
the only person whom the Prophet (ky) killed in all his battles.
Then the Prophet managed to stand up, leaning on the shoulder of
Talhah ibn 'Ubaydullah, and he looked towards the mushrikeen. He
saw a group of them on the mountain, and he sent some fighters to

Historical evenis 9I
force them down, saying, "They should not be above us. 0' Allah,
there is no strength without You." Then the battle ended. Abu
Sufq'aan said, gloating, "A day in return for the day of Badr."
Among those who were killed during this battle was Hamzah, the
paternal uncle of the Prophet (g?).His body was mutilated by Hind,
the wife of Abu Sufyaan, who took out his liver and chewed it, but
she found it tasted bitter so she spat it out. The Prophet grieved
deeply when he saw what had been done to his uncle and said,
"When Allah grants me victory over Quraysh in another battle, I will
mutilate thirty of their men." But after that Allah forbade mutilation
of the dead.
The number of Muslims killed in this battle was almost seventy, and
the number of mushrikeen killed was twenty-three. Allah revealed a
number of verses concerning this battle, to console the Muslims and
to point out the reason for their defeat. Allah ( ~g)J.d said in Soorat Aal
'Imraan:
"So do not become weak [against your enemy], nor be
sad, and you will he superior [in victory] if you are
indeed [true] believers. [fa wound [mzd killing] has
touched you, he sure a similar wound [and killing] has
touched the others. And so are the days [good and not
so good], that We give to men by turns. that Allah may

92 The Battles of the Prophet
test those who believe, and that He may take martyrs
from among you. And Allah likes not the Zaalimeen
[polytheists and wrongdoers]. And that Allah may test
[or purzfi] the believers Krom sins] and destroy the
disbelievers. Do you think that you will enter Paradise
before Allah tests those of you who fought [in His
Cause] and [also] tests those who are As-Saabiroon
[the patient]?" (Qur 'an 3: 139-142)
Then a few verses later, Allah (ik)a.3 says:
"And Allah did indeed fulfil His Promise to you when
you were killing them /)our enepnpnv]with His
Permission; until [the moment] you lost your
courage and fell to disputing about the orde~and
disobeyed ufier He showedj~oou[of the booryl which you
love. Among you are some that desire this world and
some that desire the Hereafier: Then He made youfIee
jkom them [yorrr enemy], that He might test you. But
surely, He-forgctveyou, and Allah is Most Gracious to
the believers. (And remember] when you ran away
[dreadfillw without even casting a side glance at

Historicalevents 93
anyone, and the Messenger muh ham ma^ was in your
rear calling you back. There did Allah give you one
distress afler another by way ofrequital to teach you not
to grieve.for that which had escaped you, nor for that
which had befallen you. And Allah is Well-Aware of'all
that you do." (Qur 'an 3: 1.52-153)
3. The Battle of Banu an-Nazeer
These were some Jewish people who lived in the vicinity of
Madeenah. They were allies of Khazraj and there was a peace treaty
between them and the Muslims, and an agreement to cooperate, as we
have stated above. But the nature of evil and betrayal is deeply rooted
in the Jews, and this compelled them to break their promise. Whilst
the Messenger (%L)and some of his Companions were in (the land of)
Banu Nazeer, and he was leaning against the wall of one of their
houses, they conspired to kill him by throwing a rock from the top of
the house. The Prophet (ky)realized that, so he got up quickly, as if
he had suddenly remembered something, and went back to
Madeenah, and his Companions joined him. Then he sent to them
Muhammad ibn Maslamah, telling them to get out of his land and not
live with him any more, after they plotted what they plotted of
betrayal. Then the Prophet (s)gave them ten days to leave. Banu an-
Nazeer prepared to leave within this time, but 'Abdullah ibn Ubayy,
the leader of the hypocrites, sent word to them telling them not to
leave, and he promised to send them two thousand of his followers to
defend them. So they changed their minds about leaving and holed
up in their fortresses. They sent word to the Messenger of Allah (s:)
saying, "We will not leave, do what you like." So he (><)-, went out to
them with his Companions, and 'Ali ibn Abi Taalib was carrying the
banner. When the Jews saw them, they started to shoot arrows and
throw rocks at them, but the support promised by the leader of the
hypocrites never came. The Prophet besieged them, but they stood

94 The Battles of the Prophet
firm, until he was forced to cut down their date-palm trees. At that
point they said, "We will leave your land." The Prophet stipulated
that they should not bring out weapons with them, but they could
bring out as much of their wealth as could be carried on their camels,
and their blood would be protected and not one drop of it would be
shed. When.they came out, they brought with them everything they
could, and they destroyed their houses so that the Muslims would not
be able to make use of them, and they left. Some of them settled in
Khaybar, one hundred miles from Madeenah, and some settled in
Jarash in southern Syria; none of them converted to Islam except two.
Soorat al-Hashr was revealed concerning this battle, in which Allah
(%) says:
<< 0 $,/
J~IJ~i";?,/ ;.4, UL;f, >.L,/ 53~GI3.j~;$ t
5'/* P! $3 ,J>/ / P~ZV+//~>>*/,rpJeJ'G+ E -0-*+I *yas &,L *I I& I .. 8
? /Z*' ? <c + / $", L:' P>,$: *f.+JJ fqyb/, 3 34 e-3 +& 41 wb
Z/ // /t/c.* 2, >/-+, / $< $9Y$J @ *w/ 4.kLfibL w,g../ ditj/.. k&F*
> </ / 3' ',&,*3d *,s/?// &/,-/,$<a,~&;J;;YI dp9~~jv~~~~
k' ,-
$ < ,<' 5 <* --/+ ,,>/ ;,$4-, ,'
JdL-, Jidl 6LiJ 32 44;; &I ->*L4;@ JIl 5 r.. Vd
(t-Y : 02y) +@y@-T
"He it is Who drove out the disbelievers among the
people of the Scr-ipture[i.e. theJews of the tribe ofBanu
an-Nazeer] from their homes at thefirst gathering. You
did not think that they would get out. And they thought
that theirfortresses would defend themfrom Allah! But
Allah 's [Torment] reached them fvom a place whereof
they expected it not, and He cast terror into their hearts
so that they destroyed their own dwellings with their
own hands and the hands of the believers. Then take
admonition, 0'you with eyes (to see]. And had it not

Historical events 95
been that Allah had decreed exile-fbr them, He would
certainly have punished them in this world; and in the
Hereafter theirs shall be the torment of the Fire. That is
because they opposed Allah and His Messenger
[Muhammaq. And whosoever opposes Allah, then
verily,Allah is Severe inpunishment." (Qur 'an 59: 2-4)
4. The Battle of A/-Ahzaab (the Confederates)
This battle is also known as AI-Khandaq (the Ditch). Tt took place in
Shawwaal of 5 AH, and happened because, when Banu an-Nazeer
were expelled, a number of their leaders went to Makkah and urged
Quraysh to fight the Prophet (k~),and Quraysh responded. Then the
Jewish leaders went to Ghatafaan, where Banu Fazaarah, Banu
Murrah and Ashja' responded and set out towards Madeenah. When
the Prophet heard that they had set out, he consulted his Companions,
and Salmaan suggested digging a ditch around Madeenah. The
Messenger issued commands that it should be dug, and he himself
worked on it. When Quraysh and the confederates with them reached
Madeenah, they were astounded by the ditch, for the Arabs were
unfamiliar with such things. Quraysh and their allies numbered ten
thousand, and the Muslims numbered three thousand. Huyay ibn
Akhtab, one of the Jews who had incited Quraysh and the
confederates against the Muslims, had gone to Ka'b ibn Asad, the
leader of Banu Qurayzah, and asked him to break the peace treaty
with the Muslims. The Prophet thought of trying to reconcile with
Banu Qurayzah by offering them one-third of the crops of Madeenah,
but the An~aarrehsed because they were too proud of their religion
to succumb to these treacherous treaty-breakers.
The fighting started when some of the mush)-ik horsemen crossed a
narrow part of the ditch and the Muslims skirmished with them. Then
Nu'aym ibn Mas'ood ibn 'Aamir came to the Messenger and told

96 The Battles of the Prophet
him that he had become Muslim, and that his people did not know
about his Islam; he was a fiend of Banu Quray~ahand they trusted
him. He said to the Messenger (.pg),-, "Tell me to do whatever you
want." The Messenger said to him,
"You are only one man among us, so go and awake
distrust among the enemy to draw them off us if you
can, for war is deceit."
So Nubaymused his wits until he managed to create division between
Quraysh and their allies, and amongst Banu Qurayzah, making each
party doubt the other. Then Allah sent upon the confederates a strong
wind on a cold winter's night that upset their cooking pots and
overturned their tents. The hearts of the confederates were filled with
terror, so they went away the same night, and when morning came the
Muslims looked and did not see anyone.
Allah (2%).d revealed verses of His holy Book about this battle:
"O'you who believe! Remember Allah k Favour to you,
when there came against you hosts, and Wesent against
them a wind and forces that you saw not [i.e. troops of
angels during the battle of Al-Ahzaab (the
Conjederates)]. And Allah is Ever All-Seer qf' what
you do. When they came upon you from above you and
from below you, and when the eyes grew wild and the
hearts reached to the throats, and you were harbouring
doubts about Allah. There, the believers were tried and
shaken with a mighty shaking." (Qur 'an 33: 9-11)

Then Allah describes the treacherous attitude of the hypocrites and
how they withdrew from the battle, after which He (*)says,
describing the Muslims:
"And when the believers saw AZ-Ahzaab [the
Confederates], they said: 'This is tz--/tatAllah and
His Messenger [Muhammad] had prornised us; and
Allah and His Messenger [Muhammad] had spoken the
truth. And it only added to their Faith and to their
.subntiissiver?ess[to Allah]. Among the believers are men
who have been true to their covenant with Allah [i.e.
they have gone out fbr Jihad (hob fighting), and
showed not their backs to the disbelievers]; qf them
some have fu!filled their obligations [i.e. have beerz
martyred]; and some qf them are still ttuiting, but they
have never changed [i.e. thej?neverproved treacherous
to their covenant which they corzclude~iwith Allah] h
the least. That Allah may reward the r~1er7qf truth for
their truth (i.e..fir their patience at the c~ccomplishment
of that which thqy covenanted wpith Allczh], and punish
the hypocrites. ifHe wills, or.accept their repentance by
turning to them [in Mercyj. Verily? ,411ah is Oft-
Forgiving, Most Merciful. And Allah drove back those
who disbelieved in their rage: the~lgainc~drzo advantage

98 The Battles of the Prophet
[boo@]. Allah suficed for the helievers in the,fighting
[by sending against the disbelievers a severe wind and
troop,s of angels]. And Allah is Ever All-Strong, All-
Mighty." (Qur'an 33: 22-25)
5.The battle of Banu Qurayzah
This took place in 5 AH, following the Battle of Al-Ahzaab. After the
Messenger of Allah (~e)-> saw how mean-spirited and treacherous the
Jews of Banu Qurayzah were, and how they had sided with Quraysh
and their allies, and after he saw at the height of the battle how they
broke their treaty with him, and how at the time when they were
living with him, they had been plotting great evil which could have
put an end to all the Muslims if the battle of Al-Ahzaab had not ended
the way it did, he thought that he should punish these perfidious
traitors and rid Madeenah of them, for it was the center of his jihad
and call, so that they would not have another opportunity to attack
their Muslim neighbours and annihilate them, as is the treacherous
nature of the Jews.
Bukhari narrated from 'Aa'ishah (IG~)that when the Messenger of
Allah (sg) returned from the battle of Al-Khandaq and put aside his
weapons and took a bath, Jibreel (Gabreal) (?&) came to him, his
head covered with dust, and said, "Have you put aside your
weapons? By Allah, we (the angels) have not put them aside." The
Prophet said, "Where to?" He said, "This way," and he pointed
towards Banu Qurayzah. 'Aa'ishah said: So the Messenger of Allah
(-.g~)went out to them.
The Messenger ordered that the call should go out to the people
saying that no one should pray 'Asr except in the land of Banu
Qurayzah. Then he set out, with 'Ali carrying his banner. Three
thousand of the Muslims had gathered, with thirty-six horses. When
'Ali came near to the fortress of Banu Qurayzah, he heard them

Histor~calevents 99
saying offensive things about the Prophet (G?)= -_and his wives; he told
the Prophet about that, and asked him not to go near those filthy
people. The Prophet replied that if they saw him they would not say
such things, because he knew about their hypocritical attitude. When
they saw him, they indeed spoke nicely as he had said they would.
Then the Muslims began to besiege them, and the siege lasted for
twenty-five days. When it became too difficult for them to bear, they
agreed to accept the judgement of the Messenger of Allah (~3).He
appointed Sa'd ibn Mu'aadh, the leader of Aws, to pass judgement on
them. Banu Qurayzah had been allies of Aws. Sa'd ruled that their
warriors should be killed and their women and children taken into
slavery, and that their wealth should be distributed (among the
Muslims). The Messenger (gh) carried out his ruling, and thus the
Jewish plots and conspiracies against the Messenger of Allah (gs)
and his call were put to an end in Madeenah and the surrounding
areas.
Verses of the Qur'an were revealed concerning this battle, describing
the treachery of the Jews and their attempts to weaken the Muslims
during the battle of Al-wzaab:
"And when a party of them said: '0'people of' Yathrib
[Al-Madeerzah]! There is ~o stand [pc~ssihle]fbr yoz4
(against the enemy attack.'] Therefi~rego back!' AII~u

100 The Battles of the Prophet
band of them a.rk-forpermission of the Prophet saying:
'Trub, our honzes lie open [to the enem-y].'And they lay
not open. They hut wished to-flee.And ifthe enemy had
entered+fiomall sides [of'the cityl, and they had been
exhorted to Al-Etnah (i.e. to renegade from Islam to
polytheism], they would surely have committed it and
would have hesitated thereupon but little. And indeed
they had alread~,made a covenant with Allah not to turn
their backs, and a covenant with Allah must be
answered fox Say LO' Muhammad to these hypocrites
who askyourpermission to run away-fiomyou]: 'Flight
will not avail you ifyoukflee.fromdeath or killing and
then you will e~qoyno more than a little while!"'
(Qur'an 33: 13-16)

Histgrical events 101
"Say: 'Who is he ~1hocan protect you f?-omAllah if He
intends to harm you, or intends mercy on jfou?' And
they will not-find,besides Allah,for therrzselves any Wali
[protectou: supporter] or any helpeu: A Elah already
knows those among jatc who keep buck [meld from
,fighting in Allah 5 Cause, and those I$-110 say to their
brethren 'Come here towards us.' while they
[themselves] come not to the battle except a little,
Being rnise~btowards you (as regards help and aid it?
Allah B Cause]. Then when &fearcomes, you will see
them looking to you, their eyes revolving like [those qfl
one over whom hovers death; Bzct when rhe.#eardepurts,
they avill .smiteyou with sha~ptongues, tlriserZj?towards
(spending anything in anjq good [and onb covetous of
booty and ~*eulth].Such have not believed. Therqfow
Allah makes their deeds kfiuitlessund that is ever easy
.fbrAllah. They think that Al-Ahzaah [the Conftidel'ates]
have not yet withdra~cn; and if' A/-Ahzaah [the
COGfederates] shotrld come [uguir~],t!7q) would ~vish
thy13 ,vt.r-e in the deserts [M~anderirzccrjanzong the
bedouins, seeking nervs about -vou [fhonl a *firrpluce];

102 The Battles of the Prophet
and if the}. [happen] to be umong you, they ~~ouldnot
.fight but little. !}?deed in the Messenger of ANah
[Muhammod] 1-ou have a good example to ji~llow.fir
him who hopes &for*[the Meeting with] Allah and the
Last Daj5 crnd renzenzbers Allah much. And when the
believers scnv Al-Ahzaab [the Confederates], they said:
'This is what Allah and His Messenger [Muhammad]
had promised us; and ANah and His Messenger
[Muhammad had spoken the truth. 'And it only added
to their Fnith cind to their suhmissiveness [to Allah].
Among the believers are men who have been true to
their coverlant with Allah [i.e. they have gone out .for
Jihad (holjl-fighting),and showed not their backs to the
disbelieve?-s]; of them some have fuljilled their
obligations [i.e. have been mar-~red];and some of
them are srill w7aiting,but they have never changed [i.e.
they never pr.01-ed treacherous to their covenant which
they conclzrded with Allah] in the least. That Allah may
reward thc melt uf truth for their truth [i.e. for their
patience ui the accomplishment of that which they
covenanted with Allah], and punish the hypocr-ites $
He wills, or accept their repentance by turning to them
[in Mercj 7. F &rib,Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most
MerciJul. A~zdAllah drove back those who disbelieved
in their rage: they gained no advantage [boo&]. Allah
sufficed.k .fo the believers in the fighting [by sending
against tht. disbelievers a severe wind and troops of'
angels]. Arid Allah is Ever All-Strong, All-Mighty. And
those of thr people qf the Scripture who backed them
[the disbel!t.ver-s],Allah brought them down from their
forts and c;rt rrrror into their hearts, [so thug a group
[qf them] pc)u killed, and a group [of thed j-ou made

Historical events 103
captives. And He cuused you to irlherit their 1al?dL~,and
their houses, and their riches, aid a Iarzd which you had
not trodden [h~fore].And Allah is Able to do all
things." (QuT-'an 33: 17-27)
6. The Campaign of A/-Hudaybiyah
This campaign took place in Dhu'l-Qi'dah 6 AH. It happened
because the Messenger of Allah (%y) saw in a dream that he and his
Companions entered the sanctuary secure, with (some) having their
heads shaved and (some) having their hair cut short, having no fear
(cf. Al-Fath 48: 37). So he commanded the people to get ready to go
out to Makkah for 'Umrah. He did not want war with Quraysh or to
engage in any fighting. So the Muhaajiroon and Ansaar went out
with him, filled with longing to see the sacred House of Allah after
being deprived of that for six years. Those of the Bedouin who
wanted to go also went out with them. The Prophet took with him
camels and sheep that are usually taken to the Ka'bah in order to
honour the House. He entered ihraam for 'Lzrah at a place called
Dhu'l-Hulayfah, so that the people, especially Quraysh, would know
that he had no intention of fighting. The number of those who went
out with him was almost fifteen hundred, and they did not bring any
weapons with them except those which travellers usually carried in
those days, namely sheathed swords. When he reached 'Asafaan,
someone came to him and told him that Quraysh had heard of his
march, and had come out ready to fight, swearing by Allah that he
would never enter (Makkah) whilst they were there. The Prophet (=:)
said:
"Woe to Quraysh, for they are consumed by war! What
could they lose if they leave me and the rest of the
Arabs? If they defeat me, they will have gotten what
they want, and if Allah grants me victory over them,

104 The Battles of the Prophet
they will enter Islam without being harmed; if they do
not do that then they could fight me whilst they still
have some power. So what do Quraysh think? By AIlah,
I will continue to fight in defence of that with which
Allah has sent me until Allah causes it to prevail or I die
in the process."
When he reached Al-Hudaybiyah -which is a place near Makkah,
between Makkah and Jeddah -some men from Khuzaa'ah came to
him and asked him why he had come. He told them that he had only
come to visit the Ka'bah and do 'Umvah. They went back and told
them, "You are being too hasty in your judgement of Muhammad; he
has not come to fight, rather he has only come to visit this House."
They said, "No, by Allah, he will never enter it by force whilst we are
here, and the Arabs will never talk about him in such terms."
Then they sent 'Urwah ibn Mas'ood ath-Thaqafi to speak to the
Messenger about this issue. After some discussion between 'Urwah
and some of the Sahaubah, he went back to Quraysh and told them
what he had seen of how the @haahah loved and respected the
Messenger of Allah (;?.r%), and their desire to make a deal. But Quraysh
refused. Then the Prophet sent 'Uthmaan ibn 'Affaan to the people of
Makkah, to reassure them about the purpose for which the Messenger
and his Companions had come. There was no news of 'Uthmaan for a
long time, and rumours spread among the Muslims that he had been
killed. At that point the Messenger of Allah (k?)said:
"We will not leave until we have a fight with the
people,"
-and he called upon the Muslims to give their pledge to wage jihad
and seek martyrdom for the sake of Allah. So they gave their pledge
beneath one of the acacia trees there, promising not to flee, and that it
was to be either a deal (with Quraysh) or martyrdom.

Historical events 105
When Quraysh heard about this pledge, they were afraid and thought
that it was better to make a deal with him, on the condition that he
should go back this year, and come back next year and stay in
Makkah for three days, carrying with him the weapons of the
traveller, a spear and a sheathed sword. Quraysh sent Suhayl ibn
'Amr to conclude this deal. Finally a deal was reached stipulating
what Quraysh wanted, and also stipulating a cessation of war
between the two sides for ten years; anyone who came from
Muhammad to Makkah was not to be sent back, but anyone who
came to Muhammad from Makkah would be sent back. This was too
much for the Muslims, and some of them argued with the Prophet
(;=) about these conditions. One of those who argued most
vehemently was 'Umar, until the Messenger of Allah (:s)said:
"I am the slave of Allah, and He will never forsake me."
Then the Messenger commanded his Companions to exit ihraam, but
they did not do so because they were so upset at having been
prevented from entering Makkah and at the terms of the treaty. So the
Prophet himself hastened to exit i!zmarn. Then all the Muslims
followed him. Later on, the advantages of these conditions became
apparent, which were so hard for the Muslims to accept, but which
the Prophet (&$) had agreed to because of his far-sightedness and
wisdom, and because the Revelation made his opinions and actions
right.
Allah called this campaign a manifest victory, as He (5i)said:
"I.+rill: We have given you [O' Mtih~rrnrnadja clear
cor-tqlrest. Tht All~h fbrgive yoti ??ottrsirls I$' the

Historical events 107
(Y V : t A &I ;2y)
L
"Indeed Allah shall julfil the true vision which He
showed to His Messenger [i.e. the Prophet saw a dreatn
that he has entered Makkah alorzg with his Conzparziorts,
having their (beau') hair shaved and cut short] irz very
truth. Certainly, you shall erzter Al-Masjid al-Haraanz,
ifAllah wills, secure. [some] having yortr heads shaved,
and [some] having your head hair cut short, having no
feat: He knew what you knew not, and has arranged
before that a co~~questnear [rrt hand]."
(Qur 'an 48: 2 7)
Perhaps this is a reference to the Conquest of Makkah which was one
of the outcomes of the treaty of Al-Hudaybiyah, as we shall see
below, when we examine the lessons to be learned from these events,
in sha 'Allah.This is followed by an affirmation that this religion will
prevail and be victorious, as Allah (&y) says:
"He it is Who has sent His Messenger [Mzlhamrnad]
udth guidance and the religion qftr~tth[Islanz], that He
may make it [/slad superior to all religions. Ar7d All-
Sufficie~zt.. is Allah a,r a Witness." /Qmr 'an 48: 28)
And Allah the Almighty did indeed speak the truth.

108 The Battles ofthe Prophet
7.The Battle of Khaybar
This took place at the end of Muharram in 7 AH.
Khaybar is an oasis where the Jews lived, one hundred miles north of
Madeenah in the direction of Syria.
The reason for this battle was that after the Prophet (s~)was no
longer faced with a threat from Quraysh, as a result of the treaty of
Al-Hudaybiyah, he decided to solve the problem of the Jewish
settlements around Madeenah, having rid Madeenah itself of the
Jews. The Jews had a strong fortrkss in Khaybar in which there were
nearly ten thousand fighters, and a plentihl supply of arms. They
were evil and treacherous people who had to be dealt with before
they could become a source of trouble for the Muslims in their
capital, Madeenah. So the Prophet mobilized the Muslims to go out
and attack thein at the end of Muharram. Sixteen hundred warriors
went out to attack them, including two hundred horsemen. He
mobilized those around him who had been present at Al-Hudaybiyah,
and they traveled until they were near the oasis of Khaybar. Then the
Prophet (&?) said to his Companions, "Stop!" Then he went back and
said,
"0' Allah, Lord of the heavens and what they
overshadow,
And Lord of the lands and what they make to grow
And Lord of the devils and what into error they throw,
And Lord of the winds and what they winnow,
We ask You for the good of this town and the good of its
people and the good of what is in it, and we take refuge
in You from its evil and the evil of its people and the evil
that is in it. Forward in the name of Allah!"
When they reached Khaybar, the Prophet (&?) stopped near one of its
fortresses, called Husn an-Nataah, in which their fighters had

Histor~calevents 7 09
gathered. Al-Hubaab ibn al-Mundhir suggested that he move away,
because he knew the people of An-NaLaah very well: they were able
to shoot arrows very far with accuracy, and they were higher up than
the Muslims, so their arrows would reach the Muslim ranks swiftly.
Moreover they would be able to sneak up on the Muslims at night by
hiding behind the many date palm trees. So the Messenger (.=)and
the Muslims moved to another spot, then the battle began, in which
the Muslims conquered one fortress after another, apart from the last
two fortresses. Their people wanted to make a deal that would spare
the lives of their fighters and allow them to leave Khaybar with their
women and children, each of them bringing no more than one
garment with them. The Prophet agreed to these terms, and that they
would forfeit the protection of Allah and His Messenger if they
concealed anything. Then they left the two fortresses, and the
Muslims discovered many weapons in the fortresses, and many
copies of the Torah. The Jews came later and asked for them, and the
Prophet ordered that these things should be returned to them. The
number of Jews killed in this battle was ninety-three, and fifteen
Muslims were martyred.
8. The Battle of Mu'tah
This battle took place in Jurnaadah al-Oola of 8 AH. Mu'tah is a
village on the border of Syria, which is called Al-Karak nowadays. It
is located to the south east of the Dead Sea. The reason for this battle
was that the Messenger (sx).-_ had sent Al-Haarith ibn 'Umayr al-Azdi
with a letter to the Byzantine governor of Busra, whose name was Al-
Haarith ibn Abi Shamar al-Ghassaani, calling him to Islam. This was
one of a number of letters that the Prophet sent to the kings of the
world and rulers of the Arabs after the treaty of Al-Hudaybiyah.
When one of the Arab Ghassanid governors who served the
Byzantine ruler came to Mu'tah, he said to him, "Where are you
going? Are you one of the messengers of Muhammad?" He said,

1 70 The Battles of the Prophet
"Yes." So he tied him up and beheaded him. News of that reached the
Messenger of Allah (;s)and he became very angry, for none of his
other messengers had been killed. He prepared an army numbering
some three thousand Muslims to go out and attack them, and
appointed Zayd ibn Haarithah to lead the army. He advised them that
if Zayd was killed, they were to appoint Ja'far ibn Abi Taalib as their
commander; if Ja'far was killed, they were to appoint 'Abdullah ibn
Rawaahah. He told Zayd to go to the place where Al-Haarith ibn
'Umayr had been killed, and to call the people there to Islam. If they
responded, all well and good, otherwise they were to seek the help of
Allah and fight them. He issued the following instructions to them:
"I urge you to fear Allah and to take care of the Muslims
who are with you. Attack in the name of Allah, for the
sake of Allah, those who disbelieve in Allah. Do not
betray or steal; do not kill children, or women, or old
men, or hermits in their cells. Do not touch any date
palm or cut down any tree, and do not destroy any
building."
Then the army set out with the blessing of Allah, and the Messenger
himself went to see them off. They kept marching until they reached
Ma'aan, where they heard that Heraclius had gathered a large army
and was encamped in Ma'aab, in the land of Al-Balqa' (near
Damascus). The Byzantine army was composed of Byzantines and
Christianized Arabs. The Muslims conferred with one another, and
decided to ask the Messenger (~3)for reinforcements, or to tell them
what else they should do. But 'Abdullah ibn Rawaahah said: "By
Allah, what you hate is what you came out for. We seek martyrdom,
for we are not fighting the people on the basis of our numbers, rather
our strength comes from the fact that we are fighting them for the
sake of this religion with which Allah has honoured us. So we will
have one of two good things: either victory or martyrdom." The

His torical events 111
people agreed with him that they should go ahead and fight, and the
battle began. Zayd fought until he was killed, then Ja'far ibn Abi
Taalib took up the flag and fought on his horse until he was forced to
dismount, then he fought on foot. His right hand was cut off, so he
took the flag in his left; then his left hand was cut off, so he held the
flag in his arms until he was killed, may Allah be pleased with him.
They found seventy-odd wounds on his body, from blows with
swords and spears. Then 'Abdullah ibn Ram-aahah took up the flag
and fought until he was killed. Then the Muslims agreed that Khaalid
ibn al-Waleed should lead the army -and this was the first battle
that he fought as a Muslim. He used his military know-how to save
the Muslim army from destruction, then he brought them back to
Madeenah.
This was the first battle that the Muslims had fought outside the
Arabian Peninsula against the Byzantines. It was called a ghazwah
even though the Messenger (yq)-, was not present, because of the large
number of warriors who participated, which was three thousand, in
contrast to the numbers who fought in sarcrrryas or raids.
It was following this battle that the Messenger of Allah (G*)-, gave
Khaalid ibn al-Waleed the nickname SallfulIah (the Sword of Allah).
9. The Conquest
This is the Conquest of Makkah, which took place in Ramadaan 8
AH. The reason for this battle was that the treaty of Al-Hudaybiyah
allowed each Arab tribe to enter into an alliance with the Messenger
of Allah (is)if they wanted, or with Quraysh if they wanted. Banu
Bakr agreed to enter into an alliance with Quraysh, and Khuzaa'ah
agreed to enter into an alliance with the Messenger of Allah (k~).In
that year (8 AH), Banu Bakr attacked Khuzaa'ah, killing
approximately twenty men, and Quraysh supplied Banu Bakr with
money and weapons. When the Messenger heard of that, he became

7 72 The Battles of the Prophet
very angry and prepared to fight Quraysh, but he did not want to tell
the people where he was heading lest Quraysh prepare to meet them,
and the sanctity of the holy city be violated and its streets filled with
the bodies of the slain. But Haatib ibn Abi Balta'ah al-Badri sent a
letter in secret to Makkah, telling them that the Prophet was heading
towards them. Allah told His Messenger about the letter, and he sent
some of his Companions to the women who was carrying the letter, to
search her, and they found it. The Messenger of Allah called Haatib
and asked him, "What made you do that?" He said, "0' Messenger
of Allah, by Allah I believe sincerely in Allah and His Messenger,
and I have not changed, but I am a man who has no roots and no
kinsmen among the people, and I have a wife and child among them,
so I wanted to do them a favour for the sake of my family." 'Urnar
said, "0' Messenger of Allah, let me cut off his head, for the man has
turned hypocrite!" But the Messenger of Allah (&3) said, "He was
present at Badr, and you do not know, it may be that Allah has looked
at the people of Badr and said, 'Do what you want, for I have
forgiven you."'
Then the Messenger of Allah set out from Madeenah on the tenth day
of Ramadaan. On the way, he broke his fast, and the people broke
their fast with him, because of the difficulties of their journey. When
they left Madeenah, they were ten thousand strong, and on the way,
other people from the Arab tribes joined them. In Marr az-Zahraan
the guards of the Messenger of Allah found Abu SufLaan and two
others with him. They captured them and brought them to the
Prophet, and Abu SuQaan became Muslim. Al-'Abbaas -whom
the Prophet had met on the way, as he had become Muslim and was
migrating to Madeenah -said, "Abu SufLaan is a man who likes to
look good, so give him something to make him look good." So the
Prophet said: "Whoever enters the house of Abu Su@aan will be
safe." Then the army reached Makkah, and the Prophet's callers
declared: "Whoever enters his house and locks his door will be safe;

Historical events 113
whoever enters the Mosque will be safe; whoever enters the house of
Abu Sufyaan will be safe." Fifteen people w-ere excluded from that
because their crimes against Islam and its Messenger were too great.
Then the Messenger of Allah entered Makkah, riding his mount, with
his head bowed so low that his forehead almost touched the saddle,
out of gratitude to Allah for this great victory. Then the Messenger
performed Tawluqf (circumambulation) around the Ka'bah, and
removed the idols around it, which numbered three hundred and
sixty. Then he entered the Ka'bah and prayed two mk'ahs there.
Then he stood at the door of the Ka'bah, with Quraysh waiting to see
what he would do with them. One of the things that he said on that
occasion was, "0' Quraysh, what do you think I am going to do with
you?" They said, "Good, for you are a noble brother, son of a noble
brother." The Messenger of Allah (22)---,said:
"Today 1 say to you what my brother Yusuf (Prophet
Joseph) said before me:
'Hesaid: 'No reproach on you this day; mav Allah
forgive you, and HP is the Most Mercifiil qf'those who
show mel-c:t>!" fQuv'an 12: 92)
Go, for you are free."
Then the people gathered around As-Sqfu to give their allegiance to
the Messenger of Allah (.-=)as Muslims. The Messenger sat on As-
Safa and accepted their pledges to hear and obey Allah and His
Messenger as much as they were able. He acczpted the pledges of the
men first, then the women, but he did not shake hands with any of the
women. Among those who gave their pledge was Hind, the wife of
Abu Sufyaan, who was one of those whom the Prophet had said was

7 14 The Battles of the Prophet
to be executed on the day of the Conquest. But when he recognized
her he forgave her, and she gave her oath of allegiance.
On the day of the Conquest, the Messenger of Allah (;s)commanded
Bilaal to give the call for Zuhr (noon) prayer from the roof of the
Ka'bah. The people of Quraysh who were present and had not yet
become Muslim were appalled, but the Messenger of Allah (z*)did
that deliberately for a reason.
10.The Battle of Hunayn
This took place on the 10th of Shawwaal 8 AH, a year after the
conquest of Makkah. The reason for this battle was that when Allah
granted His Messenger the Conquest of Makkah, the leaders of
Hawaazin and Thaqeef thought that the Messenger of Allah (.@,)
would head towards them after he had finished with Makkah, so they
decided to start the fighting. They appointed Maalik ibn 'Awf as their
leader, who at that time was thirty years old, and he commanded them
to bring with them to the battle their wealth, women, children and
flocks, because that would make them more steadfast in fighting. The
number of their fighters in this battle was between twenty and thirty
thousand. The Messenger of Allah (a%)=-d announced that he was going
out to fight them, and everyone in Makkah went out to fight, his
Companions who had come with him and those who had joined him
subsequently and who were new in Islam. The Messenger of Allah
(g~)traveled until he reached the wadi of Hunayn, where Hawaazin
and their allies came out to fight them at the break of dawn. The
Muslims attacked them and they fled, defeated. The Muslims started
to gather the war booty, and the mushrikoon attacked them with
arrows, so they scattered in all directions. The people of Makkah and
the new Muslims fled, but the Messenger of Allah (s)remained
steadfast, seated on his mule, saying,
"1 am the Prophet and no lie, I am the son of 'Abdul-
Munalib."

Historical events 7 75
A rumour spread among the Muslims that the Prophet had been
killed, so many of them threw down their weapons in despair. But a
group of the Muhaujii-een and Ansaar stood firm around him, and Al-
'Abbaas -who had a loud voice -started calling out to the
Muslims that the Messenger of Allah (a?)'-, n-as still alive. So those
who had run away came back to him, and the numbers of believers
increased until they were able to prevail once more. The Muslims
pursued (the mushrikeen), killing and taking prisoners. A huge
amount of booty was taken from the enemy. The Prophet shared it out
first among those whose hearts were to be softened among the new
Muslims, and he did not give anything to the Angaar, because he was
confident of their faith and the sincerity of their Islam.
Among the verses of the Qur'an that were revealed concerning this
battle are the following:
''Pzdy,Allah has given you victor):orz ??zanybattle$elds,
and on the day of'Hunayn [battle] wherr you rejoiced at
your great number: but it availed you naught and the
earth, vast as it is, was straitened for you, then yotl
turned back in .flight. Therz Allah did send down His
Sakeenah [c.alrnrzess, tranquillity and reassurance] on
the Messenger [Muhammad], and on the believers, and
seizt do~vrz*fi,r.ces [angels] wihich yozl sau7 not, and
pztnished the dishelierlers. Such is the recompense of
disbelievers, " (Qtir'aiz 9: 25-26)

7 7 6 The Battles of the Prophet
This was the last major battle between Islam and the mushrikeen.
Soon after that, the Arabs destroyed the idols and entered Islam.
11. The Battle of Tabook
This is also known as Ghamat al-'Usrah (the campaign of hardship).
It took place in Rajab 9 AH.
Tahook is a place between Wadi al-Qura, in the Hijaaz, and Syria.
The reason for this battle was that the Byzantines had gathered a huge
number of troops in Syria, including the tribes of Lakhm, Judhaam,
'Aamilah and Ghassaan, who were Christianized Arabs. They did so
because Heraclius intended to attack Madeenah and put an end to the
state that was developing in the Arabian Peninsula, as the news of
this state and its victories had filled Heraclius with fear and terror. So
the Prophet (-9%)-> ordered the people to prepare for a campaign. That
was a time of great hardship and intense heat. The sincere Muslims
responded willingly, but three of them remained behind, even though
thenr faith was sincere. The Prophet (x5)commanded the rich to
pro ide equipment for the army, and they brought a huge amount of
moxey. Abu Bakr brought all of his wealth, which was forty thousand
dirk-~ms.'Umar brought half of his wealth, and 'Uthmaan gave a
large amount in charity that day and equipped one-third of the army.
The Prophet prayed for him and said, "Nothing that 'Uthmaan does
can harm him after this day." A number of the poor Sahaabah came
to k~rnwho had no animals to ride, and the Messenger (;g,)said, "1 do
not have anything that I can give you to ride." They turned away with
tear! streaming down their faces because they did not have the means
to prepare themselves to join the army. Eighty-odd of the hypocrites
staq td behind, and a number of the Bedouin gave invalid excuses,
but -he Prophet (=)accepted them.
The Messenger of Allah (k?)set out with the people. There were
thim thousand warriors with him, and ten thousand horses. This was

Historical events 117
the greatest army that the Arabs had seen at that time. He marched
until he reached Tabook, where he stayed for twenty days, during
which he did not engage in any fighting.
This was the last of the Prophet's battles, and concerning this battle
the following verses were revealed:
"Allah has .firgiven the Prophet, the Muhaujir-oon
[Muslim emigrants who left their homes and came to Al-
Mudeeizah] and the An~aar who followed him
[Muhummad] in the time of distress [Tabook
expedition], qfter the hearts of a party of them had
nearly deviated Urom the Right Path], hut He accepted
their repentunce. Certaiai), He is unto them full of
kindness, Most Mercjful. And [He did-forgivealso] the
three who did not joilz the (Tabook e,x-peditior~and
whose case was defer-red (.by the Prophet) jbr Allah j.
Decision] till for thenz the earth, vast as it is, 1,va.s
straitened and their o~vzselve~swere sts-aitened to them,
and they pe~eivedthut there is no j7eeing Jkom Allah,
and 110 refuge btrt with Him. Then, He forgave them
[accepted their repentanct,l, thut they rtlight beg.fi,r His
Purdon [repent (unto Him)]. Verily, Allah is the Oize
Who.forgives and accepts repentance, Most Mel-cifil."
(Quu-hi? 9: 117-118)

There are also many verses which speak of the attitude of the
hypocrites and the Bedouin who excused themselves from
participating in this campaign, which contain a rebuke to the Prophet
(,-) for accepting their excuses. There are many such verses which
you will find in Soorlit at-Tawhah.
LESSONS TO BE LEARNED
First we will speak about the issue of fighting in Islam, the reasons
for it and general principles concerning it.
The Messenger (&?) began his call with gentle preaching, reciting to
his people the verses that had been revealed to him of the Book of
Allah, and speaking to them from his heart in order to open their eyes
to the state they were in, worshipping idols, following misguided and
ignorant myths. But his people responded with rejection and
mockery at first, then with lies and insults, and finally with
conspiracies to kill him, until Allah provided him with a place where
he could settle and be safe and sound. But in this new location, he
encountered two forces which were plotting against him. One of
them was Quraysh who were extremely upset by the migration of the
Prophet and his Companions to Madeenah, whose people also
believed in his message, so that he gained power which enraged
Quraysh. The other was the Jews with whom the Prophet (I=) had
wanted to make a peace treaty when he settled in Madeenah, but the
nature of the Jews is to bear grudges and to conspire, so hardly had
the Prophet settled in Madeenah and established his leadership of the
Muhaajiree~~and Ansaar, when the Jewish leaders were filled with
hatred towards this competition for leadership, which had taken over
Madeenah completely.
During his time in Madeenah, verses of the Qur'an were revealed to
the Prophet (-s)urging him to remain steadfast and bear what they
said with patience.

Lessons to be learned 179
"And be patient [O' Muhammad] with what they say,
arzd keep uway from them in a good 1rQay."
fQur'an 73: 10)
Every time a -erse was revealed urging steadfastness in the face of
persecution, the rnushrikoon increased their persecution, plots and
aggression. At that time the Muslims were unable to prevent the
persecution because they were few in number and weak. But when
the Prophet (:$%)-, settled in Madeenah and the Muslims gained power
and strength, they were faced with the strength and enmity of
Quraysh and the hidden hatred and evil of the Jews, with the
possibility that they could turn on them at any moment. Islam is a
realistic religion which does not ignore reality and follow illusions
and unrealistic ideals when dealing with people who do not believe in
or respect those ideals. So Islam had no choice but to resort to force
and prepare to repel aggression and put an end to the power and
strength of falsehood, so that it would have the opportunity to spread
its call of goodness and liberation, and address people's hearts and
cleanse their souls, to erase corruption and to set up prominent
figures of guidance to guide others and be a light for the seekers of
truth and goodness.
For all of these and similar reasons, Allah prescribed fighting for the
believers in the second year AH, when the following verses were
revealed:

120 The Batt/esof the Prophet
"Permission [t~~fight]is given to those lit'ho arefought,
because they have been wronged; and szrrely, Allah is
Able to give them victog),Those who have been expelled
Lfvorntheir homes unjustly only because they said: 'Our
Lord is Allah. 'Forhad it not been that Allah checks one
set qf people by means of anothec monasteries,
churches, synagogues, and mosques, wherein the Name
of Allah is rnerrtioned much would sureh have been
pulled don7n. Ver-ily,Ahh will help those who help His
[His Cause]. Puly, Allah is All-Strong, All-Mighty.
Those who, if C7/e give them power in the land, thewv
establish a?-Salnah (praj?ers),paj7the Zakah and enjoin
Al-Ma 'roqf [i.e. Islamic Monotheism and all that lslam
orders one to do], and-forbidAl-Mz~~zkar[i,e. disbelieJ
polj~theismand all that Islanz has forbidden] [i.e. they
make the Qur'urt as the law of their count~yit7 all the
spheres of. life]., And with Allah rests the end of [all]
matter-s [qf' crelltures]." (Qur 'an 22: 39-41)
These are the first verses that were revealed with regard to fighting
and permission for it. It is appropriate to pause here and study these
verses in order to learn the reason behind the permission to fight, and
the benefits and aims thereof.
1. Allah (;&) mentions at the beginning of this passage that He has
granted permission to the believers to fight. It should be noted that
the believers are referred to as "those who are-fizight",i.e., these

Lessons to be learned 127
believers to whom permission is given to fight are those who are
fought, i.e., those who are persecuted and against whom war has been
declared. This clearly shows that the reason why permission is given
to thein to fight is the persecution that they suffered before. So in a
way it is like fighting off aggression and reacting to like with like, as
in the verses (aayaat):
"... Then whoever transgresses the prohibition against
you, you tvansgress likewise against him.,. 9 9
fQur'an 2: 194)
"The recompelzse for an evil is an evil like thereoJ.."
(Qur'an 42: 40)
2. The verse clearly states that the fighting to which they have been
subjected is wrongdoing and oppression for which there is no
justification, as Allah says: "because they hal-e heen wronged". The
believers in Makkah were not wrongdoers or oppressors, rather they
were defending their beliefs, calling their people to liberation from
illusions, myths and bad morals.
3. The second auyah (verse) clearly states the historical
circumstances in which the persecution took place. The believers
who were given permission to fight were those who had been driven
fro~ntheir homes, and there is no oppression worse than driving a
person from his home and expelling him from his land.
4. In the same verse, the reason why the believers were driven from
their homes is mentioned, which is that they differed from their
people and did not accept idolatry and the worship of false gods, and

122 The Battles of the Prophet
they worshipped Allah the One God. So they are people who were
persecuted for their beliefs, as Quraysh did not want them to have any
freedom in this regard.
5. Since the believers did not have freedom of belief, the fighting that
was prescribed was in order to secure this freedom, as the most
precious thing in life that a person may have.
6. Then Allah explains that this fighting, which He has prescribed for
the believers, does not just secure religious freedom for them alone,
but it also benefits the followers of other divinely-revealed religions,
namely Judaism and Christianity. For at that time the Muslims were
fighting idol-worshippers who had no religion, and if they gained
strength they would be able to protect the places of worship of the
Jews and Christians as well as protecting the mosques, so that the
idol-worshippers and atheists would not be able to gain power and
wage war on the divinely-revealed religions, closing down their
places of worship. That is clear from what Allah says in this verse:
"Forhad it not been that Allah checks one set ofpeople by means of
anotheq monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques, wherein
the Name ofAllah is mentioned much, would sureIy have been pulled
down.9,
Hence it is clear that fighting in Islam is not aimed at wiping out the
divinely-revealed religions and destroying their places of worship,
rather it is aimed at protecting these religions against being attacked,
and their places of worship being destroyed or locked up by the
atheists and idol-worshippers.
7. The third verse clearly states the consequences to be expected from
a Muslim victory in the prescribed fighting. For this fighting is not
aimed at colonizing peoples and taking their resources, or
humiliating them. Rather the consequences will be in the interest of
human society, and are as follows:

Lessons to be learned 723
7.a Helping people throughout the world to achieve spiritual
hlfilment by means of worship. "[They] enjoin Iqaamat-as-@laah
0.e. to pecfbrrn the.fivecompulso~ycongregational Salaah (prajws)
(the rnales it? rizo.sque.s)]."
7.b Spreading social justice ainong people by means of zakah. "To
paj7 the Zakah."
7.c Achieving cooperation for the good of society and for its
development and betterment. "And thejt erlioin A I-Ma 'roof [i.e.
Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam 0rdel.s one to doj."
7.d Cooperating in fighting evil, crime and corruption. "And forbid
AJ-Mtlnkar [i.e. disbelieJ polytheism and all that Islam has
.forbiddetz]. "
These are the consequences that result from the believers' victory in
their fight against the enemies, when that leads to the establishment
of an Islamic state that directs people to reach their spiritual potential
and establish society on the basis of cooperation and motivates man
to do good and divert him away from the path of evil. What human
goal can be nobler than this for which fighting is prescribed in Islam?
What fighting, that the nations of the past and the present have ever
known, can match this goal of making the benefits reach all people
and build societies in a manner that leads to them developing in a
humane and constructive manner, in which there can be no return to
the first Jaahiliyah (pre-Islamic ignorance) with its permissiveness,
promiscuity, atheism, wars and bloodshed, as is the case with the
development that has taken place in the shadow of materialistic
western civilization.
Once we understand the goals of Islam and the purpose behind
permitting fighting, we will understand what is meant by its being for
the sake of Allah. For jihad -fi sabeel-illaah (jihad for the sake of
Allah) means jihad in order to achieve goodness, peace, spirituality

724 The Battles of the Prophet
and justice in society. Sabeel-Allah literally means the path or way of
Allah, and the way to Allah can only be the way of goodness, love
and cooperation in righteousness and piety, not sin and transgression.
This is a brief discussion of the aims behind the prescription of
fighting in Islam and the historical reasons for it. Now we will
discuss the lessons to be learned from the first battles of Islam, i.e., at
the time of the Prophet (ky). I wanted to speak about the lessons of
each battle on its own, but time is short and that would take dozens of
pages. So I decided to present these lessons in one go, drawing more
than one lesson from each battle. Perhaps I may be able to speak in
more detail about the lessons of each battle next year, in sha 'Allah, if
Allah allows me to live and alleviates my sickness.
1. The first battle was Badr. The Prophet (=)had gone out to
intercept the caravan of Quraysh on its way back from Syria to
Makkah, but the caravan escaped, and the mushrikoon were
determined to fight, and the battle happened as we have mentioned
above. The interception of the Quryash caravan does not mean that
the Muslims wanted to steal wealth and engage in banditry, as the
lying Orientalists claim. Rather the motive was to settle the score
with Quraysh by taking their wealth in return for the wealth of the
Muhaajir-een that Quraysh had seized. For Quraysh had forced them,
or most of them, to leave their houses, lands and wealth. If Quraysh
found out, after a person had been absent from Makkah for a while,
that he had migrated to Madeenah, they would sell his house and
seize his wealth, and the rule of like for like, which is well known
nowadays in international law, pennits such actions, as is the case
between us and Israel. We should note that, prior to the battle of Badr,
there were seven attempts to intercept the caravans of Quraysh, and
those who went out on those campaigns were Muhaajireen only; the
Prophet (%%)did not send even one Ansaari with them, and that was
because if the Mtrhaujir-oon intercepted a Quraysh caravan and took

Lessons to be learned 125
its goods, they would only be exercising a right that is given in all the
divinely-revealed and man-made laws. We will list these seven
attempts, which are as follows:
1. Hamzah was sent out seven months after the Hijrah; the party of
'Ubaydah ibn al-Haarith was sent out eight months after the Hijrah;
the party of Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqaas was sent out nine months after the
Hqrah; Ghazwat Wadaan took place twelve months after the Hijrah;
Ghazwat Bawaa!: took place thirteen months after the Htjrah;
Ghazwat Badr al-Oola (the first battle of Badr) also took place
thirteen months after the Hijrah; and Ghazw-at al-'Asheerah took
place sixteen months after the Hijrah. All of these expeditions and
battles involved the Muhaajireen only, and not a single Ansaari was
involved. This proves our point.
2. Victory in battles does not depend on large numbers or ample
weapons, rather it depends on strength of spirit and morale among the
army. In those battles, the Muslim army represented pure belief,
passionate faith, joy in martyrdom and the desire for Allah's reward
and Paradise, as well asjoy at being freed from misguidance, division
and corruption, whereas the mushrik army represented corrupt
beliefs, decadence, disintegration of social bonds, indulgence in
pleasures, and blind following of useless traditions, forefathers and
false gods.
Look at what the two armies did before battle commenced. Before the
battle of Badr the rnzlshrik army spent three days drinking wine,
listening to the songs of slave girls beating drums, and lighting fires
so that the Arabs would see what they did and so that they would be
respected and feared. They thought that this was the way to victory.
The Muslims, on the other hand, spent the time before the battle
striving hard in worship, asking Allah to grant them victory, hoping
for martyrdom and to smell the fragrance of Paradise. The Prophet
(%y) fell prostrate, beseeching Allah to grant -ictory to His believing

726 The Battles of the Prophet
slaves. The result was victory for the pious believers who feared
Allah, and defeat for the idle disbelievers who pursued worldly
pleasures.
Anyone who compares the numbers of Muslims with the numbers of
mushrikeen who fought in each battle will see that the mushrikeen
vastly outnumbered the Muslims. Despite that, the Muslims were
victorious, even in the battles of Uhud and Uunayn, where victory
went to the Muslims, and were it not for the mistakes made by the
Muslims in those two battles, and their going against the commands
of the Messenger of Allah (ST), the Muslims would not have been
defeated at all.
3. The army's determination, eagerness to do battle and joy at
meeting the enemy are all factors which make the leader more eager
to go ahead with his plans and more confident of success and victory,
as happened in the battle of Badr.
4. The leader should not force his army to fight and engage in battle if
they are not keen and enthusiastic, until he is sure that they are eager
to fight. This is what the Messenger (ky)did when he consulted his
Companions on the day of Badr before engaging in battle.
5. The troops' concern for their leader's life is something that is
required by the desire for success in battle and in da 'unh. The leader
must accept that, because if he remains alive, the call remains alive,
but if he dies the battle will be lost.
We see in the battle of Badr how the Prophet (g?)approved of having
the hut built for him, and we see in the other battles, Qud and
Hunayn, how the sincere believers, men and women, all gathered
around their Messenger to protect him fkom the arrows of the enemy,
exposing themselves to the arrows. There is no report that he
disapproved of that, even though he was brave and was supported by
Allah; rather he praised those who gathered around him, as we see in

Lessons to be learned 127
his words of praise for Nusaybah Umm 'Ammaarah, and his du 'aa'
for her that she and her husband and children would be with him in
Paradise.
6. Allah surrounds His sincerely believing slaves, in their battles,
with an army from Him, as He sent down angels on the day of Badr,
and He sent the wind on the day of Al-Ahzaab. These believers
continued to fight for His sake, so how could He forsake them, when
He is the one Who says:
"if Allah should aid you, no one can o19ercorneyou; ... 93
(Qur'arz 3: 160)
".. . and [as.for] the believers, it was incumbent upon Us
to help [them]." (Qur'an 30: 47)
"Tmly, A Elah defends those who belie~~e... 33
(Qur 'an 22: 38)
7. It is the nature of the sincere daa 'iyah that he is keen to show the
way of guidance to his enemies and to give them a chance so that
Allah might fill their hearts with guidance. Hence, we can understand
the reason why the Prophet (.%) was inclined to ransom the captives
on the day of Badr. He hoped that Allah might guide them and that
they would have offspring who would worship Allah and call others
to Him. But the Qur'an rebuked the Messenger (*) for that, because
there was something else that was in the interest of Islam on that day,
which was to strike terror into the hearts of the enemies of Allah and

128 The Battles of the Prophet
put an end to the leaders of-fitnah and misguidance. If the prisoners
had been killed on the day of Badr, the resistance of Quraysh would
have been weakened by putting an end to the leaders and to those
who kept fanning the flames of tribulation against the Muslims.
There seems to be another subtle reason why the Prophet accepted
the idea of ransoming the prisoners, which was that Al-'Abbaas, the
paternal uncle of the Prophet, was amongst the prisoners, and Al-
'Abbaas has supported the Messenger (g)on many occasions before
he declared his Islam. He had secretly witnessed the second pledge of
AL4Aqabah, and he used to tell the Messenger about all the
movements of Quraysh. This makes me certain that he was a Muslim
but was concealing his Islam, so how could the Messenger have
killed him if this was the case? If the Messenger had executed him
along with the prisoners, he would have gone against the shari'ah
which forbids killing Muslims, if Al-'Abbaas was a Muslim, and if
he was a mushrik, then Islam makes no distinction between a relative
and a stranger with regard to showing firm resolve and hostility
against everyone who wages war against Allah and His Messenger. If
he had spared him, the mushrikeen and hypocrites would have taken
the opportunity to spread news of it and to weaken people's
confidence in his justice and to instill doubts about him being free of
whims and desires in everything that he did, and that would not have
served the interests of the da'wah at all.
8. Going against the commands of the leader who is determined and
has insight leads to losing the battle, as happened in the case of Uhud.
If the archers whom the Messenger of Allah (*)-, stationed behind his
army had stayed in place as the Messenger (3~)-A had told them to do,
the mushrikoon would not have been able to attack from behind and
change their initial defeat into ultimate victory. Thus. those who are
disobedient cause opportunities to be wasted and allow the enemy to
prevail. Allah warned the believers of punishment if they disobey
their Messenger, as He (;'g) says:

Lessons to be learned 729
"... And let those rcho oppose the Messerzgerk
[Muhamrnadk] commandment [i.e. his Suttr?ah legal
ways, ordej:s, acts oj'worship, stateme~zt.~]bewaw, lest
some Fittzah [dishelieJ trials, afflictions,.. earthquakes,
killing, ovevporvered bj?a h7rant]should befall them ov
u painful torrnerzt he iilflicted on then?."
(Qur'an 24: 63)
9. The materialistic desire for the spoils of war etc. leads to failure
and defeat, as happened at the battle of Uhud, when the archers left
their positions, seeking to gather booty, and as happened at the battle
of Hunayn when the Muslims were initially victorious, but then some
of them went after the booty and forgot about pursuing the enemy,
which led to the enemy coming back and routing the Muslims. If the
Messenger (32)-r and the sincere believers around him had not stood
firm,the defeat would not then have turned into a victory. Similarly,
da 'wah efforts and their effects on people's hearts are corrupted when
their proponents become greedy for worldly goods and seek to
acquire more wealth, property and land. This makes people doubt the
sincerity of the daa 'zjahs ' call and to accuse them of not calling
people for the sake of Allah and of seeking to gather worldly goods in
the name of religion and reform. Such beliefs in people's minds turn
people away from the religion of Allah, and make them think badly
of everyone who calls for reform, even though he may be sincere.
10. The fact that Nusaybah Umin 'Ammaarah remained steadfast,
and she and her husband and children stood firm around the
Messenger of Allah (2%)when the Musliins fled on the day of Uhud,
is just one of many reports which prove that Muslim women played
ail important role in the struggle and cause of Islam. This indicates

130 The Battles of the Prophet
that we today need bluslim women to shoulder the burden of da 'wah
among young girls, wives and mothers, to raise their children to love
Allah and His Messenger and to adhere Islam and its teachings, and
to strive for the good of society.
So long as the field of da 'wah is lacking the presence of female
Muslim daa 'iyahs,or there is an insufficient number of such women,
the da tiah ah will continue to fall short and the Islamic movement will
remain lame, until half of the ummah -namely the women -hear
the call to goodness and their consciences are stirred, their hearts are
filled with love of goodness and they turnto the religion, and hasten
to adhere to its strong bonds.
11. The fact that the Messenger of Allah (Py)--was wounded on the
day of Uhud brings consolation to the daa 'iyahs for the physical
ham that they suffer for the sake of Allah, or for the loss of freedom
they suffer through imprisonment and arrest, or for losing their lives
through execution and assassination. Allah says in His Holy Book:
"Al$Laam-Meem. [These letters are one of the
miracles of the Qur'an, and none but Allah (Alone)
kno~vstheir meclnings.] Do people think that they will
be lefr alone because they say: 'Webelieve, 'and will rzot
be tested. A~tdCT/e indeed tested those who were hefire
them. And Allah will certain4 nzake [it] known [the
truth of] those u-hoare true, and will certainly nzake (it]
known [the.fulsehood of] those who are liars, [although
Allah knows all that before putting them to test]."
(Qur 'an 29: 1-3)

Lessons to be learned 131
12. What the nzushr-ikoon did on the day of Uhud, mutilating the
bodies of the Muslim dead, especially Hamzah, the paternal uncle of
the Prophet (:+y),.-I is a clear indication that thz enemies of Islain are
devoid of all humanity and conscience. For mutilation of the dead
does not cause any pain to the dead the~nselves,just as a slaughtered
sheep does not feel any pain when it is slaughtered. But it is
indicative of the black hatred that fills their hearts and is manifested
in those bestial actions that cause distress to every person who has
any kind of conscience or humane feelings.
What we saw the mushl-ikcen doing to the slain Muslims on the day
of Uhud, we see the Jews today doing to our dead in the battles of
Palestine. Both groups have the same mentality which does not
believe in Allah and the Last Day, this hatred of those who follow the
straight path in this world, those who believe sincerely in Allah, His
Messengers and the Last Day.
13. The fact that the Messenger (g)accepted the advice of Al-
Hubaab ibn al-Mundhir to change the place that he had chosen for
battle on the day of Badr, and his advice on the day of Khaybar, must
surely destroy the arrogance of those dictators who have taken
control of people against their will and consent, those whose claims
to have superior minds and far-sightedness make them look down on
the people and think that they are too good to have to consult wise-
men and thinkers. For the Messenger of Allah (=?),whom Allah
knew had the most perfect attributes which qualified him to bear the
burden of His final Message, he accepted the opinion of his
Coinpanions who had expert knowledge of nlatters of war and of the
nature of the land where the battle was to be fought. He did not say to
them, "I am the Messenger of Allah, I issue commands and you
obey." Rather he accepted their advice and opinions in matters which
were not addressed by the Revelation. But what about these dictators
whom we see are no better than the people in terms of wisd0111.
knowledge and intelligence, and have only corlie to power because of

132 The Battles of the Prophet
circumstances? What about those who are even less educated,
knowledgeable and experienced than many of those whom they rule?
Shouldn't they consult the experts and accept their advice and the
wisdom of experience?
Historical events, both recent and more distant, show us that the
arrogance of dictators leads to their downfall and that of their nations,
causing them to sink to rock bottom in such a manner that recovery is
difficult, taking decades if not centuries. What the Prophet (g?)did,
accepting the advice of Al-Hubaab at Badr and Khaybar is an
example for every sincere ruler, for every wise leader and for every
smart daa 'iyah.
One of the most prominent features of ruling in Islam is shoora or
consultation:
"... and whose aflair is [determined] by mutual
consultation ... 79 (Qur'an 42: 38)
One of the most prominent features of the longest-serving Muslim
rulers in history is the fact that they would consult and not dictate,
they would discuss with specialists in every field that concerned them.
"... and consult them in the rnatter.."(Qur'an 3: 159)
"... So ask the people of the message [i.e. *former
scripture.^] if. +I~OUhow not."
(Qztr 'an 2I:7)
14. The fact that he (:s:)was in the front line of every battle, and in
the midst of the action with them, except in cases where his

Lessons to be learned 133
Companions suggested that he should not do so, indicates that the
position of a leader can only be filled by one who is brave and
steadfast, and that cowards and weaklings are not fit to lead peoples
or armies or da'wah and refonn movements. The bravery of the
da 'wah leader's actions has an effect on his troops and supporters,
motivating them in a manner that cannot be achieved through a
thousand flowery speeches given to the masses. Soldiers and
supporters usually draw strength from the strength of their leaders, so
if the leader is scared at the time of battle and weak when the going
gets tough, this will cause a great deal of ham to the cause whose
banner he is carrying.
15. The troops and supporters of da 'wah must not go against the
leader who is determined and has insight regarding a matter in which
he is resolved to go ahead. This type of leader is shouldering the
responsibility, so he deserves to be trusted after they have exchanged
ideas and put forward their arguments. If he then decides to go ahead
with something, they have to obey him, as happened to the Prophet
(=)on the day of Al-Hudaybiyah. The Prophet accepted the
conditions of the treaty, because it became clear that it was in the
interest of the da 'wah, and the treaty was a political victory for him,
as the number of believers would increase greatly, far more than had
become Muslim previously. This is despite the fact that the Sahaahatz
found some of these conditions difficult to swallow, so much so that
some of them stepped beyond the limits of proper etiquette with one's
Messenger and leader. Something similar happened with Abu Bakr
when the Riddah (apostasy) incidents began. The view of all the
Sahaabah was that they should not go out to fight the apostates, but
the opinion of Abu Bakr was that they should go out and fight them.
Once he had resolved to do that, they obeyed him, and got ready to
fight, and it became clear that what Abu Bakr had resolved to do,
fighting the apostates, was what made Islam firmly established in the
Arabian Peninsula, and enabled the Muslims to spread Islam to the
four comers of the earth as conquerors, guides and teachers.

134 The Battles of the Prophet
16. The Prophet's asking Nu'aym ibn Mas'ood, during the battle of
Al-Ahzaab, to spread confusion and create trouble, indicates that
deceit in a war against our enemies is allowed, if it will lead to
victory, and that every means that may lead to victory and to less
bloodshed is acceptable according to Islam, apart froin treachery and
betrayal. This is the political and military wisdom of the Prophet (ky),
and it does not contradict the basic principles of Islamic morality,
because the aim is to reduce the numbers of slain in war, which is a
humane purpose.
The aim to overcome evil, kztfi-and .fimuh (tribulation) is also a
human purpose, so resorting to deceit in battle is in accordance with
the humane morals which regard war as a great evil. If it becomes
necessary to fight a war, then it must be ended as soon as possible,
because necessity should be properly evaluated and it should not lead
to overstepping the mark. Allah has prescribed fighting only in order
to protect the religion or the nation or the land. So deceiving the
enemy in a way that leads to their defeat hastens the victory of the
truth which is being fought by those followers of falsehood. It was
narrated that during the battle of Al-Ahzaab, the Prophet (:zY)---said to
'Urwah ibn Mas'ood: "War is deceit." This is a principle which is
accepted in all religions and laws.
17. The fact that the Prophet (:& accepted the advice of Salmaan to
dig the ditch, which was something that the Arabs had never heard of
before, indicates that Islam does not see anything wrong with making
use of the experience of other nations that may benefit the ummah
and the Muslim society. Undoubtedly, the digging of the ditch was of
great benefit in warding off from Madeenah the danger posed by the
confederates. The fact that the Messenger of Allah (z3) accepted this
advice is indicative of his flexibility and readiness to accept the good
things that other nations had. The Prophet (.=)did this on more than
one occasion. When he wanted to send his letters to the kings, rulers
and governors, it was said to him that the custom of the kings was not

Lessons to be learned 135
to accept a letter unless it had a seal bearing the name of the sender.
So he immediately ordered that a seal should be made on which were
the words "Mzlhamrnad Rasool Allah (Muhammad, the Messenger of
Allah)," which he used to seal his letters with. When the delegations
from across Arabia came to him after the conquest of Makkah, to
declare their Islam, it was said to him, "0' Messenger of Allah, it is
the custo~nof kings and governors to recei-e delegations wearing
fine clothes." So the Messenger of Allah (>z)-* ordered that a suit of
fine clothes be bought for him, and it was said that its cost was four
hundred dirhams, or four hundred camels, and the following day he
received the delegations wearing these clothes. This is the way of the
Messenger who was sent with the last religion, the one which will
endure until the end of time. One of the things dictated by necessity,
which should be followed in every age and location, is adopting the
best of what the other nations have of things that will benefit them
and which do not go against the rulings and basic principles of Islam.
Not doing so is inflexibility which is unacceptable to Islam as the
Qur'an says:
"... so announce the good news to My slaves -Those
whn listen to the speech and .follow tlie best of it... 7 7
(Qi~~.'an39: 17-18)
-it is also incompatible with the way of the h4essenger of Allah (2~)A --
who took from other nations as we have seen, and who said,
"Wisdom is the object of the believer which he seeks
wherever he can find it.""
" See Kusl?f'ul-Khafi-r'by Al-'Ajlootii for the different versions of this hadith.

736 The Battles of the Prophet
When the Muslims became negligent in later times, especially after
the European Renaissance began, and ignored this important lslalnic
principle, and resisted all good things taken from others when they
were in the greatest need of it, then they suffered collapse and fell
behind, whilst others advanced.
"... And with Allah rests the end of [a111 matters [of
creatup-es]." (Qur 'an 22: 41)
18. From the orders given by the Messenger of Allah (-=)to the
Muslim army during the battle of Mu'tah, we can see the humane and
compassionate touch in the wars waged by Islam. For we are not to
kill those who do not fight, and we are not to destroy anything we
find in our way unless that is for a valid reason. His Companions after
him and the Muslims down throughout the ages adhered to these
commands. Their wars were the most merciful wars ever known in
history, and when they were fighting, they had a better attitude and
were more merciful than others at times of peace. The Muslims have
a glowing historical record in this regard, whereas other nations have
quite the opposite, and this is still going on today. Who among us
does not know of the bestiality with which the Crusaders conquered
Jerusalem, and the humane compassion which Salaah ad-Deen
("Saladin") displayed when he took it back? Who among us does not
know of the bestiality of the Crusader rulers and troops when they
took over some of the Muslim capitals such as Tripoli, Ma'arrah and
others, and how merciful the Muslim rulers and troops were when
they took these cities back from the Crusaders who had seized them
unlawfully. Nowadays we are living in a time of western hypocrisy,
when the west claims to be civilized, merciful and humane, and to
love what is best for people, at the time when they are destroying
countries and shedding the blood of unarmed old men, women and
children. Unfortunately, we have seen the establishment of the state

Lessons to be learned 737
of Israel on the stolen land of Palestine, and the world has seen the
barbaric atrocities of the Jews in Deir Yassin, Qabiyyeh, Haifa, Jaffa,
'Akka and Safad, and other towns and villages. Yet, despite that, they
claim to be humane, when doing the opposite, and we act in a
humane manner but do not boast about it. For we are a people who
carry in our hearts the most beautiful moral principles in peace and in
war, and we implement them with peace of mind and a clear
conscience, whereas they do not really believe in these principles; all
they do is claim to believe in them, in a hypocritical and deceitful
manner. We are a people who believe in Allah, the All-Powerful and
Most Merciful, so our strength is mercy, whereas they are a people
who hypocritically denounce for believing that Allah is All-powerful
and punishes severely, and they claim to believe that God is loving
and merciful, but this love and mercy has had no effect on their
relations with other peoples or their wars with the Muslims or even
with their enemies who follow the same religion. We are a people
whose wars have been for the good of mankind, and we have been
the most caring of people towards mankind, vrhereas they are people
whose wars have been for no other purpose but to raid, steal, conquer
and colonize, and they have been the most hostile towards mankind.
In our wars with them today, we are defending a land, truth and
honour. There is no point in boasting about our principles with people
who do not understand the principles of mercy, honour and humanity.
Rather we have to continue with our struggle against them and stand
firm in our battles with them, adhering to the principles of our
Messenger and our shari'ah, until Allah judges between us and them,
and He is the Most Just of the judges.
19. If the army is composed of people who are not all on the same
level of zeal, faith and sincerity, and there are among them those who
are negligent, mercenaries or careless, then there is no guarantee of
victory over the enemy. This is what happened during the battle of

738 The Battles of the Prophet
Hunayn. By the same token, du 'wuh efforts cannot rely on the
numbers of people who applaud them, rather they must rely on the
numbers of people who believe in them and are prepared to make
sacrifices for them.
20. Another lesson that we can learn from the wars and battles of the
Prophet (+%)-. is his attitude towards the Jews, and the attitude of the
Jews towards him and his message. When he first came to Madeenah,
the Prophet was keen to establish peacehl relations with the Jews,
and to give them religious freedom and protect their property. He
drew up a treaty with them to that effect, but they are a treacherous
people and it was not long before they were conspiring to kill him,
which was the reason for the campaign against Banu Nazeer. Then
they broke their treaty at the most critical moment on the day of Al-
Ahzaah, which was the reason for the campaign against Banu
Qurayzah. Then they came from all directions bearing weapons and
plotting and scheming-and they came together to destroy Madeenah
and the believers in it, in a spirit of meanness and treachery, which
was the reason of the battle of Khaybar.
These are people with whom kind treatment does not do any good,
for they do not keep promises or honour treaties. Every time they see
an opportunity they seize it. Is there anything wrong with what the
Prophet (~3)did to them? Was he supposed to put up with their plots,
betrayal and breaking of treaties? Should he and his Companions
have lived in an atmosphere of constant worry, waiting for more
tribulations and conspiracies? Through his firmdealing with them,
the Prophet secured the borders of his new state and spread his call
throughout the entire Arabian Peninsula, and thence throughout the
world. No one would blame the Prophet (-s)for his firmness with
them except a Jew, a bigot or an imperialist. What was the history of
the Jews after that? Is it anything other than conspiracies, plots,
corruption and betrayal? Is their modem history any different?
Before the war in Palestine and the establishment of Israel, there were

Lessons to be learned 139
those among us who were deceived by their sweet talk, so they called
on us to cooperate with them, and their friends among the
superpowers also called for cooperation with them, the result of
which was negligence and a failure to deal properly with the issue of
Palestine. But now there is no one who is deceived by them, and we
have no way to rid ourselves of their evil except firm resolve like that
of the Prophet (;g)in dealing with them, so that we can make our
lands secure and play our new role in carrying the message of Islam
and peace to all the peoples of the world.
This is the trust which we hand over, with sincerity and faith, to the
new generation, in the hope that they may achieve what our negligent
generation failed to do.
2 1. The battle of Mu'tah was the first encounter between the Muslims
and Byzantines. Were it not for the fact that the Arabs of Ghassaan
had killed the envoy sent by the Messenger of Allah (s?)to the
governor of Busra, there may not have been any confrontation. But
the killing of his envoy to the governor of Busra would be regarded
as a hostile action in all laws, and is indicative of an absence of good
relations and of the evil of those agents of Byzantium. Hence, the
Messenger of Allah (%q) decided to send the army to Mu'tah as a
warning to them and to their Byzantine masters of the strength of the
new state, and that it was prepared to defend itself, so that they would
not think of attacking it. When the Muslims reached Mu'tah, they
found a group of Byzantines and Christianized Arabs who were
under their rule, the number of which the historians put at two
hundred thousand. The brother of Heraclius was leading this army
and he camped at Ma'aab, near present-day 'Amman. The size of the
army confirmed the Prophet's expectations, that they were
determined to confront the new state and put an end to it, fearing the
establishment of an independent Arab state in the Arabian Peninsula
that could signal an end to their colonization of Arab lands and
enslavement of Arab peoples who lived on the borders with Hijaaz.

140 The Battles ofthe Prophet
This was the beginning of the battles between the Muslims and
Byzantium.
22. In the battle of Tabook, there are clear signs of the effect that
sincere faith has on the hearts of the believers, making them
determined to fight and motivating them to spend money and to put
up with heat, hardship, and intense exhaustion for the sake of Allah
and to earn His pleasure. Hence, when three of the believers who had
sincere faith stayed behind with no excuse, the Messenger of Allah
(.&?) commanded that they were to be boycotted and ignored; their
wives and children, let alone the rest of the Muslims, stopped
speaking to them. This led one of them to tie himself to a pillar in the
mosque, and another to hide away in his house, until Allah accepted
their repentance, after the Muslims had learned a valuable lesson
about those who fail to perform their duties with no excuse other than
preferring ease to hardship and cool shade to the burning heat of the
sun.
23. In the Conquest of Makkah, there are too many lessons to explain
in these few short pages. In this event, we can see the nature of the
Prophet (~3)who had no room in his heart for grudges against those
who had resisted and opposed him. After a struggle between him and
them, that had lasted for twenty-one years, in which they had spared
no effort to try to kill him and his followers and put an end to his call,
when he finally overcame them and conquered the capital of their
idolatry, he did no more than pray for forgiveness for them and set
them free. No such thing had ever been done in history, but it was
done by a noble Messenger who did not seek kingship or power, but
rather Allah wanted him to be a guide and conqueror of hearts and
minds. Hence he entered Makkah in humility, thanking Allah, not
boasting and gloating as mighty conquerors do.
24. There is another reason for what the Prophet (3:)did with the
people of Makkah. For Allah knew that the Arabs would be the ones

Lessons to be learned 7 4 ?
to carry His Message to the world, so he kept the people of Makkah.
who were the leaders of the Arabs, alive so that they could enter the
religion of Allah, and then convey the message of guidance and light
to other peoples, sacrificing themselves, their rest and their bodies to
save those peoples from their misguidance, and leading them forth
from darkness into light.
25. The final lesson that we will mention from the battles of the
Prophet (&y) is the lesson we learn from the victories that Islam
achieved in an unimaginably short period of time. This is one of the
greatest signs that Muhammad was indeed the Messenger of Allah
(;2y)-, and that Islam is the call to Allah Who guarantees that Islam and
the believers who carry its banner will prevail. Allah would not
forsake His call which is truth, mercy and light. Allah is the Truth and
He is the Most Mercihl, the most Compassionate, Whose mercy
encompasses all things. Allah is the Light of the heavens and the
earth, and who can extinguish the light of -411ah?! How could He
allow falsehood to attain the ultimate victory over truth, or barbarity,
harshness and evil to prevail over mercy and righteousness?
The Messenger of Allah ((s)and the Muslims suffered wounds in the
battles of Uhud and Hunayn, but du'wah entails hardship, wounds
and sacrifice:
''kt*ilj; Allah ill help those who help Him [His
Cu~se].G11ly, Allah is All-Strong, All-Might):"
(Qtu'arz 22: 40)

CHAPTER SIX
THE MOST IMPORTANT EVENTS
FROM THE CONQUEST OF MAKKAH
UNTIL THE DEATH OF THE PROPHET
THE BATTLE Of HUNAYN
After Allah (&) enabled His Messenger and the Muslims to conquer
Makkah, and the resistance of Quraysh, which had lasted for twenty-
one years from the beginning of his mission, collapsed, then
Hawaazin gathered to fight the Messenger (B) and the battle of
Hunayn took place, details of which are mentioned in Seerut Ihrz
Hishaam.
The following lessons may be learned from this battle:
1. The stubbornness of Maalik ibn 'Awf, and his failure to listen to
the advice of Durayd ibn as-Summah because he was too keen to lead
and believed that he was right, and he was too arrogant to allow his
people to say that he -a young, strong leader -had listened to the
advice of an old man whose strength was spent. If he had heeded the
advice of Durayd, his people would have avoided that great loss of
their wealth and the great shame of having their women captured. But
arrogance and pride in leadership lead the subject peoples to doom
and destruction, and hasten their loss. His pride made him refuse to
submit to the strength of Islam to which the proud Quraysh
themselves had submitted after such a long and bitter struggle. He
thought that with the men and wealth that he had, he would be able to
defeat the new strength of Islam. His arrogance also made him insist

144 The Most important Events
on bnnging out his people's womenfolk and wealth with them, so as
to prevent their defeat, and he ignored the advice of Durayd who told
him that when a person wants to flee, nothing can stop him. He
ignorzd the fact that the Muslims whom he was going to fight were
not depending in their hope for victory on wealth, numbers or
weapdns, rather they were depending on the power of Allah, the
Almighty, the Compeller, and His promise to them of victory and
Paradise. It was not fear for their womenfolk and wealth that
prek ented them from being defeated, but rather their desire for the
reward of Allah and fear of His punishment, as He warns of a painful
punishment and harsh 1-engeancefor those who turn their back in the
battl sfield:
"Arzd whoever turns his back to them on s~tcha day -
t~rzlessit be a str-atagem of'wa~ou to retreat to a troop
CoJf' his owrz], -he indeed has drawn upon himsey
~vi-at11from Allah. And his ahode is Hell, and ~vovst
indeed is that destination!" (Qzlr 'a118: 16)
So hhalik and his tribe of Hawaazin, and those who were with him,
were defeated. The consequences of his arrogance did not befall him
alone, but they befell all of his people, because they obeyed him in
that. When he warned them that if they did not obey hiin he would
fall on his sword, they hastened to obey him. If they had followed the
advice of their experienced older leader, and ignored the arrogance of
their oung leader, what befell them would not have happened. They
feared the anger of their leader, but if they had asked themselves,
what would happen if they made him angry, the answer is that they
would have lost their leader, and what was so terrible about that?

The battle of Huna yn 145
What would be so awful about the loss of an arrogant, selfish leader
who wanted to keep the glory of battle for himself and not share it
with those who were more able and more experienced than him in the
ways of battle? Is the life of one person equal to the life of a tribe or
nation? Allah has warned us in the Qur'an about the consequences of
such submission of societies to the whims and desires of rulers and
leaders. Allah says, in the story of Moosa's dealings with Pharaoh:
"Thus he [Fir'awlz (Pharaohfl befi~oled[and misled]
hispeople, and they obeyed him. Verily, they were ever a
peuple ~vhowere Faasiqeen [rebelliou.~,disobedient to
Allah], So whe~thej) angered Us,
-by their turning away from the truth and following
their false rulers -
Wepunished them, and diwwned them all. And We made
them a precedent [as a lessorz for those coming after
them],
-an example of punishment -
9and a11 e-rample to later generations.
(Qur.'an 43: 54-56)
2. The Prophet (s3)borrowed one hundred coats of chain mail and
whatever weapons he needed from Safwaan. who was a mushrik.
Apart from the fact that it is essential to make complete preparations
to fight the enemy, this also demonstrates that it is permissible to buy
or borrow weapons from the kzflar, so long as that will not give them
the upper hand or enable them to cause harm to the Muslims in any
way. The Messenger (:@;) borrowed weapons from Safwaan after the
Conquest of Makkah, but Safwaan was weak and insignificant, and

146 The Most Important Events
was not in a position to dictate conditions to the Messenger of Allah
(~7).This is indicated by what he said to the Messenger when he
asked him for the weapons. He said, "Are you taking them by force,
0' Muhammad?" The Messenger (s)replied, "No, rather it is a loan
and a trust, until we bring them back to you."
This event also gives us an example of the noble ways in which the
Muslims dealt with their defeated enemies. If the Messenger of Allah
(:s)had wanted to take the weapons by force, he could have done so,
and Safivaan would not have been able to say anything. But this was
the way of the Prophet (2%)in victory and in dealing with the
vanquished: he would not touch their wealth after the battle had
ended and weapons had been laid down. We have never heard of
anyone doing such a thing before Muhammad (??)-, or after him. What
we have seen of how t-ictorious armies treat the vanquished and take
over their wealth, honour and rights serves to reinforce what we have
said.
"... Btlt Allah says the truth, und He guides to the
[Right] Way." (Qur '~7233: 4)
3. When the Messenger of Allah (+?)-=-. went out to fight in this battle,
there were twelve thousand with him. Ten thousand of them were
those who had come out with him from Madeenah and had been
present at the Conquest of Makkah; they were the Muhuajiree~zand
Ansaar, and the tribes who lived in the vicinity of Madeenah or on the
route from Madeenah. The other two thousand were people who had
become Muslims after the Conquest, and in most cases Islam was not
yet firmly established in their hearts. Some of them had entered Islam
only after their hopes of resisting and overcoming it had been dashed.
In this army, there were sincere believers who had pledged

The battle of Hunayn 7 47
themselves, heart and soul, to fight for the sake of Allah to make His
religion prevail, and there were those whose religious commitment
was weak, or who bore grudges and had become Muslims
reluctantly; they were resentful about the victory of Islam. So the
army was not all on the same level of strong will and faith in the aims
for which it was fighting, and there were those who simply wanted
the spoils of victory. Hence, the initial defeat is something which
should come as no surprise, and when the Prophet (;=)saw how
many people were with him, he said, "We will not be overcome today
because of small n~rnbers,"~i.e., such a large army as this can be
defeated only because of the characteristics and morale of individuals
in its ranks, that have to do with their faith, strength of spirit, sincerity
and readiness to make sacrifices. Thus, the Messenger of Allah (x?)
set out an important principle for us, which is that victory does not
depend on large numbers or on having weapons, but rather it is the
matter of morale in the hearts of the fighters which motivates them to
make sacrifices. The Qur'an confirms this in more than one place, as
Allah (Q&)says:
"... HOW @en has a small group ovel-come a mighg
host by Allah 5 Leave. And Allah is with As-Saahireen
[the patient]. " (Qur'ar7 2: 249)
This is clearly indicated by the verses which were revealed after this
It has not been proven that thc Prophet (2%)o-, said this. It was narrated by Ibn
Ishaaq in his Maghuazi. but there are breaks and unknown persons in its isnad.
It was said that the one who said it was Salamah ibn Salaamah ibn Waqsh, or
Abu Bakr as-Siddeeq. or Al-'Abbaas, or a man from Bani Bakr.

148 The Most important Events
battle was over:
"E.uly, Allah has given you victor)?on many battlefields,
and on the day of Hunayn [battle] when you rejoiced at
your great ~zumbel;but it availed you naught and the
earth, vast as it is, was straitened for you, then you
turned back in -flight. Then Allah did send down His
Sakeenah [calmness, t~~unquillityand reassuratzce] on
the Messenger [Muhammad], and on the believers, and
sent down forces [angels] which you saw not, and
punished the disbelievers. Such is the recompense of
disbelievers." (Qur 'an 9: 25-26)
4. On the way to the battle, some of the believers said to the
Messenger of Allah (dy):.--"0' Messenger of Allah, make for us a
Dhaat ~nwaaf~like theirs." The Messenger (.&) replied,
"By the One in Whose hand is the soul of Muhammad,
you have said something like that which the people of
Moosa said to Moosa: 'They said:
'0'Moosa [Moses]! Makefor us art ilah [a god] as they
har~eaalihah [gods]. 'He said: 'Verily,you are a people
who know MO~.' (Qur'an 7: 138)
K Dkaat An~vaay:This was a great tree to which the pagan Arabs would come
each year and hang their weapons on it, offer sacrifices beside it and devote
themselves to it for a day. (Seerat Jbrz Isf~aaq).(Translator)

The batfle of Hunayn 149
This is the same attitude, you are following in the
footsteps of those who came before you."'
Here the Messenger of Allah (2%)indicated what this ummah would
do, namely imitating the nations that came before it. This is a warning
against doing that, and an indication that no one does that except one
who is ignorant. For the nations which know what is good and what
is evil, what brings benefit and what causes harm, follow what is
good and cling to it, and turn away from evil and flee from it; they
refuse to follow any path that leads to harm, even if that is what all the
other nations are doing. If they imitate others blindly and without
caring about the consequences, then they are doing the wrong thing.
This is the ignorance of which Allah (J&) says:
"... Verily, you are a people who know*rzot."
fQur'a~77: 138)
The nation which has confidence in itself, is proud of its identity and
is at peace with the truth and goodness that it has, will rehse to
follow behind others in matters that will harm it or which go against
its principles. If it imitates others, this is a sign that it is weak in
character, confused in its thinking, giving in to whims and desires,
and falling into weakness and decline. This is the jaahiliyah
(ignorance) from which Allah has saved us through His Messenger,
His Book and His shari'ah. In the view of calls for reform, the words
knowledge and ignorance do not refer to literacy and illiteracy, rather
they refer to guidance and misguidance, awareness and stupidity. For
the nation that is aware of what will benefit it and what will harm it is
the nation that has knowledge, even if it is illiterate, and the nation
which does not follow the path of goodness is an ignorant nation no
matter how many branches of science it knows or how learned it is.
What causes a nation to decline -no matter what nation it is -is

150 The Most Important Events
when the feelings and desires of its people are controlled by ignorant
concepts and ideas. Let us ask history: did the civilization of Greece
and Rome collapse for any reason other than the ignorant concepts
and ideas that prevailed over them?
Those who imitate others are ignorant, no matter how much they
know; they are children, no matter what age they reach, and they will
remain ignorant children until they are set free.
5. During this battle. after the Muslims were defeated in the
beginning, and they ran away and left the Messenger of Allah (go),
Shaybah ibn 'Uthmaan wanted to take revenge on the Messenger of
Allah (&), because his father had been killed during the battle of
mud. Shaybah later said, "But when I got close to the Messenger of
Allah and wanted to kill him, 1saw something coming at me until it
overpowered me, and 1 could not bear it. Then I realized that he was
being protected from me."
Similar events took place throughout the Prophet's life. It happened
with Abu Jahl, and with others in Makkah, and in Madeenah. All of
these incidents indicate that Allah had surrounded His Messenger
with an atmosphere of fear which terrified those who conspired to kill
him. This indicates that the Prophet (%%).-A was speaking the truth when
he claimed to be a Messenger. and that Allah had decreed that His
Prophet was to be protected fi-om all plots and was to remain alive
until he had conveyed the message and fulfilled the trust, until the
Arabian Peninsula was saved from its ignorance and its sons were
sent out into the world to teach, educate and save the nations. Were it
not for Allah's protection of His Messenger, the mushrikoon would
have ended his life at the beginning of the call, and the religion and
blessing would not have been perfected and completed; the light,
guidance and mercy of the message would not have reached us, the
course of history would not have been altered and mankind would

The battle of Hunayn 7 51
not have been freed from blindness and misery by the spread of
Islam; there would have been no end to the tyrannical rule of kings
and rulers who based their control of people's affairs on oppression
and persecution, and prevented people froin feeling honour or
avenging their oppression. All of this was achieved by virtue of
Allah's protection of His Messenger, so that the trust was rendered in
full.
Undoubtedly, the blessings that Allah bestowed upon His Messenger
were great indeed.
't.. Aizd Ever Great is the Grace of'Allah unto you [O'
Muhammad]." (Qur 'an 4: 113)
And the favour that His Messenger did to inankind was also great:
"And We have sent you [Of Muhammad] not but as a
mercy for the 'Aahmeen [nzaizkind, jirin and all that
existsj." (Qzir7ai7 21:107)
Undoubtedly, the saving of the one who calls people to the truth from
the plots and schemes of his enemies is a continuation of that great
blessing which started with Allah's protection of His Messenger,
The daa 'iyahsmust always --after taking proper precautions -turn
to the protection of Allah and seek the protection of His glory and
might. They must have faith that Allah is with them and helping
them, that they have a protector, and that whoever Allah wants to
save from the plots of the enemies of true guidance will be saved, no
matter how strong their power and no matter how great the plots,
conspiracies and crimes they are capable of, for this protection and
help and humiliation of the enemies come from Allah, Whose decree

752 The Most lmportant Events
and command are forever executed.
"Zf Allah helps vo~c,none can overcome you ...79
(Qtcr-'an 3: 160)
No matter how great the plots of a human evildoer, the help of Allah,
the Just, is far greater and more powerhl, so no daa '@ahor reformer
should feel afraid, and no one who believes in Allah should hesitate
to do his duty, with confidence that Allah will help and support him.
". .. and [asfor] ?hebelievers, it itvas incumbent upon Us
to help [thew." (Qur 'an 30: 47)
"Those who oppose Allah and His Messenger
[Muhammad], they will be among the lowest [most
humiliated]. Allah has decreed: 'Verily, it is I and My
Messengers who shall be the victorious. ' Verily,Allah is
All-Powerful, All-Migh fy. " (Qur 'an 58: 20-21)
This does not mean that the enemies of Allah may not sometimes
succeed in attacking and killing some of the leaders of the call for
reform, or harming them. For death is real, and it is the inevitable lot
of the son of Adam. If it is decreed that a person should die at the
hands of the wrongdoers, this is something with which Allah has
honoured him, and a blessing that He has bestowed upon him, for
every death for the sake of Allah or injury suffered for the sake of the

The battle of Hunayn 153
call of truth is an honour, every trauma suffered for the sake of reform
is a means that leads to eternal life.
"... That is because they suffer neither-thirst r~oyfutigue
nor hunger in the Cause qf'Allah, nor thej~take ail-ystep
to raise the anger of'disbelievers rzor ir!flict any injury
upon an enemy hut is written to their credit as a deed of
righteousr~ess.Surely, Allah wastes not the reward of
the Muhsineen." (Qur 'an 9: 120)
6. The Muslims were caught unaware at the beginning of the battle,
when they were ambushed by their enemies. This led to confusion in
the Muslim ranks, so they split and ran away from the Messenger of
Allah (g),and only a few of them stood firmwith him. Then the
Messenger of Allah (s)started to call out, "To me, 0' people! Come
back to me! I am the Messenger of Allah, I am Muhammad ibn
'Abdullah." But the people could not hear his voice, so he asked Al-
'Abbaas, who had a loud voice, to call out to the people, "0'Anqaar,
0' comrades of the acacia tree!" They replied, "Here we are, here we
are." A man would try to turn his camel and nvouldnot be able to do
it, so he would take his chain mail and throw it on its neck, then he
would take his sword and shield and get off his camel and let it go on
its way, and make for the voice until he reached the Messenger of
Allah (%?), until one hundred of them had gathered around him. Then
they faced the people and fought until they achieved victory.
From this event, there is a number of lessons which those who call for
truth should pause and study at length. For the defeat of the da 'M~I

154 The Most Important Events
in battle may be caused by weakness in the belief of some of its
followers, and lack of sincerity towards the truth and a lack of
readiness to make sacrifices for its sake. By the same token, if the
leader of the da 'wah is steadfast at times of crisis and is courageous,
having faith in Allah and believing in His support, that will have a
great effect in changing defeat into victory, and in strengthening the
weak and hesitant among his followers. Those who are steadfast and
sincere among the supporters of truth, who rally behind their brave
and sincere leader, also have a great effect in changing defeat into
victory. Those who stood firm with the Messenger of Allah (z)after
the initial defeat at the beginning of the battle, and those who
responded to the Prophet's call were no more than one hundred. Then
the course of the battle changed and the support of Allah came to His
believing slaves, and their enemies started to be defeated and fear
filled their hearts and their ranks. The more the leader of da ivah and
his troops remember that they are following the truth, and that Allah
is with the sincere believers, the stronger their morale becomes, and
the more prepared they become to make sacrifices.
The fact that the Prophet (:&) said, "1 am the Messenger of Allah" -
or according to another report, other than the report of Ibn Hisham, he
said, "'Iam the Prophet and no lie, 1am the son of 'Abdul-Munalib"
-indicates that the Prophet spoke the truth in his claim to be the
Messenger of Allah and that he was confident of the help of his Lord.
This is how the leader should also be in moments of hardship; he
should have confidence in himself and he should turn to his Lord
with certain faith that He will help and support him, and that He cares
for him. If the leader has confidence in his goals and aims and
mission, that will have a great effect on his success and on rallying
the people behind him; it will reduce the hardships that he feels and
will help him to bear difficulties with tranquility.
7. The attitude of Umm Sulaym bint Milhaan (,+)<-' is a source of
pride, one of many among the early Muslim women. She was present

The battle of Hunayn 7 55
at the battle with her husband Abu Talhah (.&+& and she was wearingY
a striped girdle and was pregnant. She had Abu Talhah's camel with
her and she was afraid that it would be too much for her to handle, so
she put her hand in its nose ring of hair along with the nose rein. The
Messenger of Allah (1s;)saw her and said, "(Are you) Umrn
Sulaym?" She said, "Yes, may my father and rnother be sacrificed for
you, 0' Messenger of Allah! Kill those who run away from you as
you kill those who fight you, for they deserve death! "The Messenger
of Allah (%y) said, "Rather Allah will save me the need, 0' Umm
Sulaym." She had a dagger with her, and her husband Abu Talhah
asked her why she had it with her. She said, "It is a dagger I took with
me so that if any of the mushvikeen comes near me, 1 can rip him up
with it!" Abu Talhah admired her and draw the Prophet's attention to
what she had said.
This is how the Muslim women were, and this is how the Muslim
woman should be, playing her role in the battles to defend Islam by
being there herself, so that if there is a need or if the enemy comes
near her, she can repel his aggression herself, so that she will not be
taken prisoner. The Muslim women in the early days of Islam have a
glowing history of sacrifice, struggle and bravery, which is a slap in
the face to those bigoted Orientalists and other westerners who tell
their people that Islam despises and looks down on women and does
not let them play a role in society that is suited to the mission for
which they were created. Indeed, they go even hrther and say that in
Islam there is no room for women in Paradise, and a woman will
never enter it, no matter how many acts of worship and piety she
does!
In addition to the clear texts of the Qur'an and Sunnah, this lie can be
refuted by examining Islamic history itself, ~hichhas recorded the
efforts made by women to spread Islam and call people to it, and the
sacrifices that they have made for that purpose, efforts which are
unknown on the part of women in all other religions. What Umrn

Sulaym did in this battle (the battle of Hunayn) is just one of
hundreds of similar examples. We are not concerned about
responding to the bigoted enemies of Islam regarding this subject, so
much as we are concerned about learning a lesson from the story of
Umm Sulaym that encourages us to call on Muslim women to play
their natural role once again in serving Islam, raising the new
generation according to its teachings and principles. Muslim women
nowadays are either righteous and devout, contenting themselves
with praying, reading Qur'an and keeping away from haraam
(forbidden) things, or they are deviant and misled, following western
ideas, neglecting the guidelines of Islam for western ways, neglecting
the attitude of the Muslim Arab woman for the attitude of the western
woman, which brought doom and misery to herself, her family and
her society. Although there are some people who have undertaken the
mission of tempting Muslim Arab women away from the attitude and
characteristics for which she is known and which raised the best
generations in history to the noblest and most sublime level of
manners and achievements, Islam and its history -especially the
history of the Messenger of Allah (&) -urges women today to
come forward once again to serve Islam and the Muslim society
within the limits of their natural role and mission and the fine
attributes of nobility, chastity, modesty and shyness. I wonder, will
our religiously committed Muslim girls relive the history of
Khadeejah, 'Aa'ishah, Asma', Al-Khansa', Umm Sulaym and their
like? Will they bring back to life for us today the history of these
great believing women who shine like bright stars? Is it too difficult
nowadays to find among them dozens like Khadeejah, 'Aa'ishah,
Asma' and Umrn Sulaym? Not at all, because correct teaching and
strong awareness and faith guarantee that and more. Who will start
the new page for the Muslim Arab woman in our times, and not care
about the calls of the misguided or the mockery of those who poke
hn, those enemies of goodness, truth, virtue and Islam?

The battle of Hunayn 757
8. During this battle, the Messenger of Allah (&?) passed by the body
of a woman who had been slain by Khaalid ibn al-Waleed (2&),and
the people were crowding around her. He said, "What is this?" They
said, "A woman who was killed by Khaalid ibn al-Waleed." The
Messenger of Allah (&z) said to some of those who were with him:
"Catch up with Khaalid and tell him, The Messenger of Allah forbids
you to kill any child or woman or hired worker."
Undoubtedly, this prohibition on killing the weak or those who are
not taking part in the fighting -such as monks. women, old men and
children -or those who have been forced to fight, such as peasants
and hired workers -is something that is unique to Islam in the
history of wars throughout the world. Such laws which are filled with
mercy and humanity were never known before Islam or since, even
nowadays. It was the custom and the norm, among all peoples that in
war, the nations who were fighting were allowed to kill all groups
among the enemy nation, with no exceptions. Even in modem times,
when human rights have been proclaimed, and when the largest
international body has been set up to prevent wars and to help
oppressed peoples, as they say, the conscience of humanity has not
reached such a sublime level that they declare it is forbidden to kill
these groups of people. In the First and Second World Wars, we have
seen cities destroyed along with their inhabitants; we have seen how
it is regarded as allowable to slaughter them in mass killings. We
have also seen the colonialists' wars against the popular uprisings in
which the people demanded their rights to life and honour, when the
imperialists regarded it as allowable to put down these rebellions by
destroying towns and villages, and killing their inhabitants by the
thousands and tens of thousands, as the French did more than once in
Algeria, and as the English did in more than one of their colonies, and
as the Portuguese are doing now in their colonies in Africa.
We know of no nation in history, whether ancient or more recent, that
forbade killing hired workers and peasants who were forced into

7 58 The Most lmportant Events
fighting. But fourteen hundred years ago, Tslam expressly forbade
killing them, and the matter was not limited only to forbidding that in
law, but that is also what in fact took place. In the battle of Hunayn,
we see the Prophet (;2)himself, the one who conveyed the shari'ah
from Allah to the people, getting angry at the slaying of a woman,
and sending word to some of his commanders not to harm women,
children and hired workers. When he was preparing the army of
Usaamah to fight the Byzantines -a few days before his death -
some of the orders that he issued were not to kill women, children,
old people and monks who were not fighting or helping the fighters.
The caliph Abu Bakr as-Siddeeq (h,)did the same when he sent out 2d
the army of Usaamah, and when he sent out the armies to fight for the
sake of Allah and for the sake of truth, goodness, guidance and
justice. The "Sword of Allah" Khaalid ibn al-Waleed (L:e) did the e
same in his battles in 'Iraq; he did not harm the peasants who were
devoted to tilling their land. This became the way of the Muslim
armies in all places and at all times, following these noble humane
principles which no army in history had ever known before. We can
see how keen the Muslim armies were to adhere to these principles
from the way in which Salaah ad-Deen (Saladin) dealt with the
Crusaders after his victory over them, when he took Jerusalem back
from them. He gave safe passage to old men, clergy, women and
children, and even to the fiercest fighters. He sent them to join their
people under guard of Muslim troops, and he did not harm them at
all. In contrast, when the Crusaders conquered Jerusalem, their
treacherous, ignoble and bestial nature was made manifest. The
Crusaders promised the Muslim inhabitants of Jerusalem that their
lives and property would be safe if they raised a white flag over Al-
Masjid al-Aqsa. So the Muslims who were deceived by this promise
gathered in the mosque. But when the Crusaders entered Jerusalem,
they slaughtered everyone who had sought sanctuary in the mosque
and the number of people slain reached seventy thousand, including

The battle of Hunayn 7 59
scholars, ascetics, women and children. A Crusader scribe sent news
of this conquest to the Pope and boasted that the Crusaders' horses
waded up to their knees in the blood of the slain in the streets.
We are not saying this in order to boast about our conquests and
commanders and armies of which Le Bon says,
"History has never known any conqueror more rnerciful and
more just than the Arabs."
Rather we are saying this in order to draw attention to the fact that we
were more merciful and more kind to humanity than these westerners
in the twentieth century, and that when these westerners speak to us
of human rights, the Day of the Child and Mother's Day, pointing to
the sublime nature of their civilization, they are not deceiving us,
rather they are deceiving the foolish and simple-minded, those who
have lost hope in their ummah and their history, who claim to belong
to us and to be our educated elite.
We want our new generation to be aware of these plots and to have
confidence in their religion and their noble heritage, so that they will
not succumb to these westerners like a poor man succumbing to a
rich man, and they will not rush to study their culture without
distinguishing between what is good and what is bad, like a moth
falling into the flame that will bum it.
Science has proven that Islam is the best of religions, the closest to
man's innate nature, the most in tune with man's best interests.
History proves that the wars of Islam were the most merciful wars,
the least traumatic and the best and noblest in purpose. Every day we
see further proof that Islam is the religion of Allah, and that
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and that the true Muslims are
the best of the slaves of Allah, better than all other people.

7 60 The A,<~stImportant Events
"We will :ho~-them Our Signs in the universe, and in
their ow?:selves, until it becomes mantfest to them that
this [the Qur'arzj is the truth. Is it not sufficierzt in
regard tc; YOUI-Lord that He is a n'i:tness over all
things? '' (Qur'an 41: 53)
9. After the Messenger of Allah (.$$-, and the Muslims chased those of
Hawaazin who led to Thaqeef in At-Taa'if and besieged them for
several days w-irhout being able to conquer them, he returned to
Madeenah, and :In the way he divided the spoils from the battle of
Hunayn. There -vere six thousand women and children, and countless
numbers of camzls and sheep. He gave a large share of them to the
nobles of the Aribs?to soften their hearts towards Islam, and he gave
a lot to Quraysh.but he did not give anything to the Ansaar. Some of
them spoke abc-tit feeling upset that they had been deprived of this
booty, and someof them even said, "Now the Messenger of Allah has
met his own peaple, and he will no longer think of us now that Allah
has granted hlrn the conquest of Makkah and Quraysh have
submitted to Isam." The Messenger of Allah (2) gathered the
Ansaar to get he^ and addressed them. After praising Allah he said,
"0'Ansair I have heard what you are saying. Do you
think ill ~f me in your hearts? Did I not come to you
when you were erring and Allah guided you, poor and
Allah made you rich, enemies and Allah softened your
hearts?" They said, "Yes indeed, Allah and His
Messenge are most kind and generous." Then he said:
"Why dol't you answer me, 0' Ansaar?" They said,
"How skill we answer you? Kindness and generosity

The battle of Hunayn 161
belong to Allah and His Messenger." He said. "Had you
so wished, you could have said --and you would have
spoken the truth and have been believed --You came to
us discredited and we believed you; deserted and we
helped you; a fugitive and we took you in; poor and we
comforted you. Are you disturbed in mind because of
the insignificant things of this life by which I win over a
people that they may become Muslims. while I entrust
you to your Islam? Are you not satisfied that men
should take away flocks and herds while you take back
with you the Messenger of Allah? By the One in Whose
hand is the soul of Muhammad, but for the migration I
should be one of the Ansaar myself. If all men went one
way and the Ansaar another, I should take the way of
the Ansaar. May Allah have mercy on the Ansaar, their
sons and their sons' sons." The people wept until their
beards became wet, and they said, "We are satisfied
with the Messenger of Allah as our lot and portion."
There is a number of things which we may comment on here.
Firstly: The issue of booty as part of the system of war in Islam. This
has been taken by our enemies as a means of attacking Islam by
claiming that there is a materialistic motive for declaring war in
Islam, and an effective means of motivating the Muslim troops to
sacrifice themselves, and this is why the Muslim soldiers rushed to
collect the booty after the battle ended, as in the case of this battle. No
doubt any fair-minded person would reject this claim, for the motives
for war in Islam are spiritual, aiming to spread the truth and ward off
enmity and aggression. This is clearly stated in many unambiguous
verses and ahaadeeth. It is very strange to suggest that a man would
sacrifice his life and place his family's future in jeopardy for the sake
of material gains, no matter how great. The desire for material gains

7 62 The Most Important Events
cannot lead to such great acts of heroism as were seen on the part of
the Muslim warriors at the beginning of Islam, and it cannot lead to
the astounding results that were the outcome of the Muslims' battles
with the Arabs during the lifetime of the Prophet (gt)or the battles
with the Persians and Byzantines after that. The enemies of Islam are
not themselves free of the desire for materialisticgains, for they stand
to gain the wealth of the Muslims and to enslave the Muslim people if
they defeat them. The Muslims are not the only ones who shared out
the wealth of their enemies and enslaved them when they defeated
them; this is what happens whenever two armies meet in battle. So
why did the desire for materialistic gains not produce the same
outstanding results for the enemy as among the Muslim soldiers and
in the wars of Islam? In the wars of Islam, we can see definitive proof
that material gain was not the primary motive in the mind of the
Muslim soldier. In the battles of Badr, Uhud, Mu'tah and others, the
Muslim heroes went forth to battle hoping to gain the honour of
martyrdom and the delights of Paradise. One of them threw aside the
dates that he was eating, when he heard the Messenger of Allah (s)
promising Paradise to the martyrs, and he went forth into battle
saying, "Fine, fine! there is nothing standing between me and
admittance to Paradise but these dates! By Allah it is a long
distance!" Then he kept fighting until he was killed. One of them
came out to fight the enemy, saying, "Paradise! Paradise! By Allah I
can smell its fragrance near Uhud." That was at the battle of Uhud.
During the battles with the Persians, when Rustum offered to give the
Muslims money or clothing if they would change their minds and go
back to their own land, the response of the leader of the Muslim
delegation was: "By Allah, this is not what we came out for. Rather
we want to save you fkom the worship of human beings and turn you
to the worship of the One, the Subduer. If you become Muslim, we
will go back and your wealth and your land will remain yours, and

The battle of Hunayn 163
we will not fight you for any of it." Is this a response of a group that
went out in pursuit of booty, hoping to seize land and wealth?
But for those who make these false claims to cite how the spoils were
divided after the battle of Ijunayn, when a lot of the fighters were
hoping for some of the spoils and when the Ansaar felt upset because
they were not given any, this is ignoring what happened in the battle
and the quality of the fighters. A11 of those who hoped for the booty
were new Muslims in whose hearts the teachings of Islam were not
yet firmly established, as they were in the hearts of those who had
become Muslim before them. Hence, people such as Abu Bakr,
'Umar, 'Uthmaan, 'Ali, Ibn 'Awf, Talhah and .4z-Zubayr, the senior
Sahaabah who had become Muslim before. did not hope for the
booty. What happened in the case of the Ansaar was the view of some
of them, who thought that preference was being given to some
fighters over others in the way the spoils were shared out on that day.
This happens to most people in every time and place; this is what any
person would feel under similar circumstances.
Nothing is more indicative of the fact that the Ansaar were seeking
the pleasure of Allah and Paradise, and to obey His Messenger, than
the way they wept when the Prophet (:$q)-=--addressed them. One of the
things he said to them was, "Are you not satisfied that men should
take away flocks and herds while you take back with you the
Messenger of Allah?" If people prefer to have the company of their
Messenger and to have him with them, living among them, rather
than to have wealth and worldly gains, can it be right to say of them
that they were striving for the sake of wealth and worldly gains?
It makes no sense to ask why Islam allocates the spoils of war to the
fighters and does not allocate it to the state as happens nowadays?
Because to say such a thing is to ignore human nature and the
customs of warfare in those days. The Muslim army was not the only
army that shared out four-fifths of the spoils among its troops; this

164 The Most Important Events
was the way of all armies, including the Persians and Byzantines. If a
scholar were to suggest today that the spoils of war be given to the
state, that would not be too far from the principles and spirit of Islam.
Secondly: Giving a lot to those who were new in Islam is a sign of
the wisdom of the Messenger of Allah (pzy), and his understanding of
his people's nature and his far-sightedness in his handling of affairs.
For these people who had done wrong by fighting the Messenger of
Allah (2~)and refusing to accept his message until after the Conquest
of Makkah, some of whom had expressed joy when the Muslims
were defeated at the beginning of the battle, needed to have their
hearts softened towards Islam, and needed to be made to feel that
their entering the religion was a good thing from a materialistic point
of view, which had been the motive for their fighting Islam. Because
in fact when they fought it, they were the leaders among their people
and wanted to stay that way, so they were protecting their material
interests. So when Islam defeated them and weakened them at the
Conquest of Makkah, it was possible that they may have harboured
resentment against this victory in their hearts, grieving for their
defeat and loss. But Islam is the religion of guidance, and it is not
sufficient for it simply to impose its rule by force, as many systems
do which rely for their existence on force without any response from
people's hearts and minds. Rather it is essential that hearts be opened
to Islam, so that people accept its guidance and love its principles and
ideals. So long as giving will influence some people and open their
hearts and take away their enmity, it is perfectly wise to give them
something so that they will be content, as the Messenger of Allah
(.p)did.
Allah knew that His call, which ultimately prevailed over the Arabian
Peninsula, had to spread throughout the world, to the east and west.
So it was essential to prepare all the Arabs to bear this message and to
make sacrifices for its sake. The hearts of their nobles could be won
over through these gifts, and subsequently opened to the light of true

The batrle of Hunayn 7 65
guidance and prepared to carry the burden of du 'kvah,and this is what
happened. For after the Messenger of Allah (..%) had softened the
hearts of these leaders, all their resentment towards Islam and its
message melted away. When the Muslim armies advanced far and
wide throughout the earth, spreading the principles of Islam and
bringing the people forth from darkness into light, the Arabian
Peninsula was prepared for this great historical effort. These leaders
whose hearts had been softened were amongst the most enthusiastic
and motivated participants in the struggles for liberation. History
proves that many of them achieved great things in the Islamic
conquests, and that many of them were lzading figures in the
establishment of Islam outside the Arabian Peninsula, running the
administration of the Muslim state and leading its armies as they
advanced in all directions.
The fact that when they first became Muslims, these rnujaahideen
(holy fighters) were among those whose hearts had to be softened
towards Islam or whose entering Islam was delayed until after the
conquest of Makkah should not matter. Often those who come later
catch up with those who went before, and the weak catch up with the
strong, and the deeds of those who were not sincere in the beginning
gradually become sincere. Al-Hasan (may Allah have mercy on him)
said: "We sought this knowledge for a purpose other than for the sake
of Allah, but it insisted on being for the sake of Allah." And someone
else said, "We sought this knowledge and we had no proper intention,
then the intention came to us later on. It is sufficient for the
latecomers that Allah has promised them the best reward, as He (;$)
says:
"... Not eqclul urnorlg you are those who spent arid

166 The Most Important Events
fought befbre the conquering [qf' Makkah, with those
among you who did so later]. Those are higher in
degree than thev who spent adfought afienunrds. But
to all Allah has promised the best [veward]. And Allah
is All-Aware of what you do." (Qur 'an 57: 10)
Thirdly: The way in which the Messenger of Allah(,+)gathered the
Ansaar together and tried to reassure them and pacify them after they
had not been given any of the booty is indicative of his diplomatic
approach and his kind attitude. For when he heard what some of them
were saying about the booty, he wanted to reassure them and he
gathered them together for that purpose, and he spoke those wise
words to them, even though he knew that they loved him and were
obedient to him, and that they had been willing to give up their lives
and their wealth for the sake of Allah. He was not worried about them
doing something that would undermine their faith or incur the wrath
of Allah and His Messenger, but he wanted to dispel the
misunderstanding that some of them had about this matter. This is a
good example which the leaders should follow when dealing with
their supporters and followers, for the enemies are always waiting for
any event or word which they can exploit to weaken the attachment
of the followers to their leader. The Shaytaan (Satan) is evil and
crafty, so the leaders should not neglect to reassure their followers no
matter how much they trust them.
Moreover, let us look at the wise and moving way in which he (.=)
reassured them and convinced them of the wisdom of what he had
done. He mentioned their efforts in support of Islam and of its
Messenger, how they had hastened to believe in him when his own
people had rejected him and driven him out. Then he reminded them
of the blessings of Allah to them, how He had saved them fiom
misguidance, division and enmity, so that it would be easier for them
to forget about the things of this world that they had missed out on

The battle of Hunayn 767
when they compared it to that blessing and guidance. In this manner,
he confirmed two things for them: that he was not going to rejoin his
people and forget these Ansaar as some of them thought, and that
when he did not give them any of the booty. he was trusting the
strength of their religious commitment, deep faith and great love of
Allah and His Messenger. There was no more eloquent way of
reassuring those righteous people who had been among the first to
support the call and who believed in it sincerely without expecting
any reward or thanks (from people). May Allah send blessings and
peace upon him. How true are the words of Allah:
"And verily,you [0' Muhammad] are or? an exalted
[stu~zdurd08charactel:" (Qur hn 68: 4)
Fourthly: The attitude of the Ansaar after they heard his words is the
most sublime example of sincere faith, softness of heart and
remembrance of Allah's blessing of guidance and piety. For they
realized that all favours belong to Allah and to His Messenger with
regard to the support, help and jihad that they offered. Were it not for
Allah, they would not have been guided; were it not for His
Messenger, their hearts would not have been filled with light; were it
not for Islam, Allah would not have brought them together after they
had been divided, protected their blood after it had been shed, saved
them from the domination of the Jews and their exploitative
neighbours, and caused them to prevail by virtue of Islam. Then they
announced that they preferred the Messenger of Allah (?Y)-> to all the
wealth and joy that may exist in this world. When the Messenger of
Allah (p)prayed for mercy for them, their children and their
children's children, their tears flowed out of joy at the Prophet's care
for them and his prayer for them that would inevitably be answered.
Is there any stronger evidence of their sincere faith? Is there any love
deeper than this love? May Allah be pleased with them and make

7 68 The Most Important Events
them pleased, may they ever be remembered throughout the world,
and may He cause us to join them in the Paradise of delight, with His
great and beloved hlessenger, and those on whom Allah has
bestowed His favour of the Prophets, siddeeqs, martyrs and those
who are close to Him.
Finally, this attitude, and what happened between the Messenger of
Allah (-&:) and the Ansaar, are things that should be remembered by
evzry daa 'iyah and memorized by every seeker of knowledge, for
they increase faith and stir up feelings of love towards the Messenger
of Allah (;g~).-I and his Companions, may Allah be pleased with them
all,
THE DESTRUCTlON OF THE IDOLS
Ibraheem (Abraham) (A?&) (may Allah's peace be upon him) --who
was the father of the Prophets after the Prophet Nooh (Noah) (2~)-
was one of those who fought idolatry among his people, and his
people even tried to bum him in the fire, as the Qur'an tells us. When
he came to Makkah, he left his son ismaa'eel (Ishmael) (2~)there
with his mother, and when ismaa'eel grew up they built the Ka'bah
together to be a House at which Allah would be worshipped and to
which people would come on pilgrimage. Ismaa'eel had many
descendents, who were the musta 'rah (Isma'eels' Arab descendents)
Arabs, as the historians call them, and they continued to know
nothing of the worship of idols and rocks.9 Then their worship
became such that no man would travel from Makkah without taking a
stone with him from the sanctuary, out of veneration towards the
sanctuary and love towards Makkah. Wherever he went he would put
it down and circumambulate it as they circumambulated the Ka'bah,
9 Idols (asnaam) refers to objects of worship in the form of statues. Rocks
(ansaab) refers to rocks w-hich were worshipped and at which sacrifices were
offered.

The destruction of the idols 7 69
seeking blessing thereby and out of love and longing for the
sanctuary. This state of affairs continued until 'Amr ibn Luhayy
introduced idol worship among them, five hundred years br fore the
Prophet's mission began, as they say. He was the first clme who
changed the religion of Ismaa'eel (pa).He took custod, of the
Ka'bah after expelling Jurhum from Makkah and its envircns, then
he became very ill. Someone told him that in Al-Balqa' in Syia there
was a hot spring (hammah) -in the place that is know1 as AI-
Hammah nowadays -and that if he went there he would be cured.
So he went there, bathed in the waters and was cured. He found the
people there worshipping idols and said, "What is this?" They said,
"We pray for rain through them, and we seek victory over our
enemies through them." He asked them to give him some ~f them,
which they did, and he brought them to Makkah and set them up
around the ~a'bah." After that, idol-worship spread throughout the
Arabian Peninsula, until each household in Makkah had an idol that
they would worship in their house; whenever a person wanted to
travel, the last thing that he would do would be to touch it for
blessing, and when he came back the first thing that he uould do
when he entered his house would be to touch it for blessing.
The Arabs became very fond of idol-worship. Some of thsm took
structures for worship, and others took idols for worship. Those who
could make neither an idol nor a structure would set up a rock in fi-ont
of the Ka'bah or in some other place that seemed good and then
circumambulate it as the people circumambulated the Ka'bah. When
a man traveled and made camp, he would take four stones, choose the
best of them and take it as a god, and use the other three to rest his
cooking pot on. When he moved on he would leave them behind, and
when he made camp again he would do the same thing again."
lo Al-Asnanm by Hishaam ibn Muhammad ibn as-Saa'ib al-Kalbi. p. 8.
I I Al-Asnaam by Al-Kalbi, p. 33.

170 The Most Important Events
The Arabs had three major idols which they venerated, to which they
went on pilgrimages and offered sacrifices. The oldest of them was
Manaat, which was set up on the coast near Al-Mushallal in Qadeed,
between Madeenah and Makkah. All the Arabs used to venerate it,
and the most devoted to it were Al-Aws and Al-Khazraj. When the
Messenger of Allah (I*) went out to conquer Makkah in 8 AH, he
sent 'Ali (&) to destroy it and take what belonged to it, and he
brought it to the Prophet (%A).The things that he seized included two
swords which had been presented to it by Al-Haarith ibn Abi Shamar
al-Ghassaani, the king of Ghassaan. This Al-Haarith was the one who
killed Shujaa' ibn Wahb al-Asadi (&) when he gave him the letter of
the Prophet (s),calling him to Islam. He was the only envoy of the
Prophet (~5)who was killed.
The second great idol was Al-Laat which was in At-Taa'if. This was a
square rock which was venerated by Quraysh and all the Arabs.
When the delegation of Thaqeef came, after the Prophet (&) had
returned to Madeenah after the Conquest of Makkah, they asked him
to leave Al-Laat for them and not destroy it for three years, but he
refused. They kept on reducing the time they asked for and he
refused, until they asked him for one month, and he still refused.
Ibn Hishaam said: "It seems that they wanted to be safe from the
anger of the fools among them and of their women and children; they
did not want to traumatize their people by destroying it until they had
entered Islam. But the Messenger of Allah (G)insisted on sending
Abu Sufyaan ibn Harb and Al-Mugheerah ibn Shu'bah to destroy it.
When Al-Mugheerah started to strike it with a pickaxe, the women of
Thaqeef came out bareheaded and wailing, reciting in verse, "We
grieve for the one who used to protect us against our enemies and
ward off calamity from us. The mean-spirited cowards have allowed
it to be destroyed; they did not defend her or fight with the sword for
her sake."

The destruction of the idols 171
The third idol was Al-'Uzza which was to the right of anyone who
traveled from Makkah to Iraq. Quraysh were the only ones who
venerated it. When the Qur'an came down, reviling this and other
idols, that was hard for Quraysh to take. When Abu Uhayhah -
otherwise known as Sa'eed ibn al-'Aas ibn Umayyah ibn 'Abd
Shams ibn 'Abd Munaaf -fell sick with the illness that would be his
last, Abu Lahab came to visit him and found him weeping. He asked,
"Why are you weeping, 0' Abu Uhayhah? Is it because of death,
which is inevitable?" He said, "No, but 1fear that Al-'Uzza will not
be worshipped after I am gone." Abu Lahab said, "By Allah, she was
not worshipped during your lifetime for your sake, and she will not
cease to be worshipped after you are gone." Abu Uhayhah said:
"Now I know that I will have a successor," and he liked the fact that
Abu Lahab was so keen to worship it.I2
In the year of the Conquest, the Prophet (+%)-> summoned Khaalid ibn
al-Waleed, and commanded him to go and destroy it. When Khaalid
came to it, its custodian Daybah ibn Harrni ash-Shaybaani spoke in
verse, saying,
"0' 'Uzza, make an annihilating attack on Khaalid.
Throw aside your veil and gird up your train.
0' 'Uzza, if you do not kill this man Khaalid,
Then bear a swift punishment or become a Christian."
Khaalid said, "0' 'Uzza, I disbelieve in you and I do not seek your
forgiveness. 1 see that Allah has humiliated you."
It was said that she was an Abyssinian woman with unkempt hair,
putting her hand on her shoulder in the tree that Khaalid had chopped
down. She came out in this manner and he struck her, splitting her
head open. Then she turned to ashes. When he told the Messenger of
Allah (%g) that he had fulfilled his mission, he (g~)said: "That was
I2 Al-A,snaam by Al-Kalbi, p. 23.

172 The Most Important Events
Al-'Uzza and there will never again be any 'Uzza for the Arabs; she
will not be worshipped after this day."
These were the most famous of the Arabs' idols during the
Jaahiliyah, and these are the ones mentioned in the Qur'an where
Allah (>Q) says:
"Have you then considered Al-Laat, and Al-'Uzza (two
idols of the pagan Arabs] And Manaat [another idol of
thepagan Arabs], the other third?" (Qur 'an 53: 19-20)
When the Messenger of Allah (&) entered the Sacred House on the
day of the Conquest of Makkah, he saw images of the angels and
others, and he saw a picture of Ibraheem (2~)depicted with azlaam
(arrows for seeking good luck or help in decision making) in his
hand, as if he were casting them. He said,
"May Allah curse them! They depict our shaykh casting
azlaam arrows. What would lbraheem want with
azlaam arrows?
''Ibraheem [Abraham] was neither a Jew nor a
Christian, but he was a true Muslim Haneefan [Islamic
Monotheis~n-to worship none but Allah Alone] and
he was nor of -41-Mushrikeen." (Qur hn 3: 67)."
Then he ordered that all of those pictures be erased.
Ibn 'Abbaas said: The Messenger of Allah (ky)entered Makkah on
the day of the Conquest, riding his mount, and he circumambulated
the Ka'bah riding. Around the Ka'bah there were idols fixed with
lead. The Prophet started pointing to the idols with a stick in his hand,
saying,

The destruction of the idols 7 73
"Truth [i.e. Islamic Monotheism or this Qur 'anor Jihad
against polj~theists]has come and Bautil Ifialsehood,
i.e. Satan orpolytheisn~]has vanished. Surely, Baatil is
ever bound to vanish." (Qur 'an 17: 81)
When he pointed to an idol's face, it fell backward, and when he
pointed to an idol's back it fell on its face, until there was no idol left
that had not fallen.
Not many months after the Conquest of Makkah, all the idols of
Arabia had fallen from their thrones and their erstwhile worshippers
had rejected them. Those who had previously worshipped them felt
ashamed of their foolish beliefs and of the fact that they had
worshipped stones that could neither bring benefit nor cause harm,
and which offered no protection whatsoever.
When the message of Islam began to revile these idols and criticize
those who worshipped them, and called them to the religion which is
in accordance with man's nature, namely the worship of Allah, the
Creator of the universe and the Lord of the Worlds, the Arabs,
foremost among them Quraysh, resisted this call and found it odd.
"Has he made the aalihah [gods] [all] into One Ilaah
[God -Allah]? krilj: this is a curivlrs thing."
(Qur'an 38: 5)
The Arabs came together to fight this new religion. They tried to bury
it alive and to do away with its Messenger by all possible means, but
victory finally came to the Messenger of Allah (gq) after a struggle
that lasted for twenty-one years, and he conquered the capital of

774 The Most In~portantEvents
icalatry, destroying its gods and defeating its army and the plots of its
leaders. Can anyone believe that this could have been achieved in
such a short period of time, when there was no one with the
Messenger of Allah (&?) when he began his call, if it had not been for
tkz guidance and support of Allah?
"... And you [AWuhammadj threw 120t when you did
throw, but Allah threw..." (Quv 'an 8: 17)
Thus Muhammad ibn 'Abdullah (s)put an end to the intellectual
cnsis of the Arabs that had lasted for five hundred years or more, and
he freed the Arab mind fiom the chains of idolatry and its myths. He
rescued the Arabs' dignity from the humiliation of idolatry and
opened the doors of fame and glory for the Arabs to enter once and
for all. The Messenger of Allah (.=) indeed spoke the truth when he
said: "There will never again be any 'Uzza for the Arabs; she will not
be worshipped after this day." The Arabian Peninsula bade farewell
forever to idolatrq. and the Arab mind reached maturity; it would
never again return to its childhood, a childhood of idolatry which
made them put their foreheads at the feet of dumb rocks. After the
death of the Prophet, there were wars and tribulations, and false
prophets, and attempts to match the Qur'an, but we do not hear of a
single Arab who contemplated returning to idolatry. That is because a
mature adult cannot go back to being a child. All of that was achieved
through Muhammad (:?%)--_and his message; until the end of time, his
is the virtue of having saved and liberated every Arab, and of
spreading the message of guidance to the peoples of the world,
whether they followed his guidance or turned away from it. Allah
says:

The batrle of Tabook 175
"He it is Who sent among the tlnlettered ones a
Messenger [Muhummad] Jrom among themselves,
reciting to them His Verses, purlfiing them [from the
.filth of disbelief andpolytheism], and teaching them the
Book [this Qur 'an, Islamic laws and Islamic
jurisprudence] and Al-Hikmah [As-Sunnah: legal
ways, orders, acts of worship of' Prophet
Muhammad]. And verily, they had been before in
manifeSt error." (Qur'an 62: 2)
THE BATTLE OF TABOOK
A brief discussion of the most important lessons to be learned from it:
Firstly: The reason for this battle was that the Byzantines had
amassed a huge army in Syria, and Heraclius had paid them a year's
salary in advance. They had been joined by the Arab tribes of Lakhm,
Judhaam, Ghassaan and 'Aamilah. Then their vanguard reached Al-
Balqa', between Syria and Wadi al-Qara. When news of that reached
the Messenger (p-z),-? he told the people to set out for Tabook; he
ordered them to prepare themselves for battle, and he ordered the rich
to spend money for that purpose.
This demonstrates to us the nature of war in Islam; it is not aggressive
or provocative, rather war is waged in defence of the religion and the
country, to ward off aggressors and prevent them from causing harm
and doing damage. This is what is stated clearly in many verses of the
Qur'an. We have spoken of the reasons for which war is prescribed in
Islam, its aims and means, in the first year (of our syllabus). The fact
that the Messenger of Allah (s)set out for Tabook after the

I 76 The Most lrnportant Events
Byzantines had gathered supports what we said before.
The fact that some Arab tribesjoined the Byzantine forces against the
Muslims indicates that they were far from having any understanding
of Islam and its message of liberation for mankind in general and the
Arabs in particular. If they had understood that, they would not have
helped the Byzantines against their own people, the Muslim Arabs.
Secondly: The Messenger's call to prepare for war came at a time of
great hardship and heat, and at the time of the harvest. The sincere
believers hastened to respond to the Messenger's call without paying
any attention to hardship, but the hypocrites stayed behind and
started making all kinds of excuses. Thus, at times of difficulty, those
who are sincere becomes distinguishable from the hypocrites and
pretenders. Allah (ik)a,-. says:
"AlifLaam-Meem. [These letters are one of the
mimcles of the Qur 'an, and none but Allah (Alone)
knows their meunings.] Do people think that they will
be le$ alone because they say: 'We believe, 'and will not
be tested. And N/e indeed tested those who were before
them. And Allalt will certainly make [ir] known [the
truth off those ~vhoare true, and will certailzly make [it]
hzown [thefalsehood oJ17those who are liars, (although
Allah knows all that before putting them to test]."
(Qur 'an 29: 1-3)
The ummah can only rise when it is able to rid itself of hypocrites and
pretenders. None can stand firm at times of hardship except those
who are sincere, of strong resolve and deep faith. Those who are

The batrle of Tabook 177
weak in faith or are merely making an outward of faith often impede
the progress of reform movements in the ummah, and prevent them
from attaining victory, or they delay it, if only for a while. The army
that set out for Tabook rid itself of these elements after their weakness
of faith and lack of resolve was exposed. An army that is united and
consolidated in its ranks, strong in its faith and sincere in its purpose
is more beneficial to the ummah -even if it is small in numbers -
and is more likely to attain victory than a large army whose thoughts,
strength and steadfastness vary.
"How qften a small group overcame a mighty host by
Allah 5 Leave? And Allah is with AS-Saabireen [the
patient]." (Qur'an 2: 249)
Thirdly: The fact that the wealthy Sahaab~~h,such as Abu Bakr,
'Umar, 'Uthmaan (may Allah be pleased with them all) and others,
hastened to spend is indicative of the effect that faith had on the
hearts of the believers, making them hasten to do good and resist the
whims and desires of the self. This is something that every nation and
every call needs in order to ensure victory over its enemies and to
secure the financial support that it needs. This is what our ummah is
in the greatest need of today, for our enemies are many and our
burden is heavy; the battle is frightening and our enemies are strong
and crafty. We cannot prevail over them unless we become more
prepared to sacrifice our wealth and our lives, and give up our whims
and desires. That can only be achieved through sincere commitment
and proper understanding of Islam, that motivates people to spend
and strive hard for the sake of Allah, and hope for his reward.
The best thing that reformers and leaders of revivals can do is to
implant the religion properly in the hearts of people. Every kind of

178 The Most Important Events
resistance to the religion, or calls for liberation from it, or belittling it,
is a crime against the nation, which leads to the worst consequences
and most serious results. This is what Allah tells us and is what
history has proven in the past and is what experience is showing us at
present, Every denial of this fact is a mistake to which no one would
resort except those who are not sincere towards the truth and whose
hearts are not open towards goodness.
Fourthly: Some people came to the Messenger of Allah (%%)asking
him to take them with him forjihad, but he refused because he had no
mounts for them, and they turned away with their eyes brimming
with tears for being deprived of the opportunity to wage jihad with
the Messenger of Allah (%L).This story, which Allah tells us in His
Book, is one of the most eloquent examples of the miracles wrought
by faith. For human nature is such that man rejoices when he is
spared danger and is far away from war, but these sincere believers
wept because of that, and they thought of themselves as missing out
on a great share of the reward of Allah and opportunity to achieve
martyrdom for His sake. What principle could have such an effect on
people as faith had on these men? What loss befalls the ummah when
it is deroid of such people?
Fifthly: In the story of the three who stayed behind and did not go for
jihad, preferring ease to exhaustion, shade to heat, staying home to
travelling, zven though they were sincere believers, is an important
social lesson. Faith stirred in their hearts shortly thereafter, and they
realized that by staying behind and not going with the Messenger of
Allah (23)they had committed a great sin. But despite that, they were
not excused from punishment, which was severe and intended as a
deterrent. They were totally excluded from society, and the people -
even their wives -were forbidden to speak to them. When Allah
knew that they had repented sincerely, and that their regret and
sorrow had reached their ultimate limit, Allah accepted their
repentance. When they were given the glad tidings of that, their joy

The farewe//pilgrimage 179
knew no bounds; one of them even gave up all his wealth and
clothing out of gratitude to Allah for the blessing of His pleasure and
forgiveness.
Such lessons should prevent the believer who is sincere in his faith
from holding back from any effort that is dictated by a sense of duty
or in which he would prefer ease when the people are working hard,
or comfort when they are suffering. This is the nature of faith, that
you always feel that you are part of a group, and that whatever befalls
the group befalls you, what benefits the group benefits you, and that
comfort means nothing if the ummah is suffering, and there is no joy
in ease if people are struggling and exhausted. You realize that
holding back and not doing what is necessary is a lack of faith and a
shortcoming in religious commitment, a sin of which one must
repent.
This story also teaches us that 'aqeedah (faith) comes before family
ties, and that implementing the system prescribed in shari'ah comes
before fulfilling individual whims and desires; family ties are of no
avail in protecting one from the anger and wrath of Allah.
"... And let those who oppose the Messenger>
[Muhanzmadk] commandment [i.e. his Sunnah legal
ways, orders, acts c?fworsh@,statemei~ts]beware, lest
some Fitnah [dishelieJ trials, afflictions,.. earthquakes,
killing, overpowered by a grant] should befall them or
a paiqful torment be inflicted olz thertt." (Qzrr 'an
24: 63)

7 80 The Most important Events
THE FAREWELL PILGRIMAGE
The Farewell Pilgrimage was the only Hajj which the Messenger of
Allah (e)performed after his mission began. When the people heard
that the Messenger of Allah (3?)&, was going for Hajj that year, they
came to Hajj from all parts of the Arabian Peninsula, and their
numbers reached one hundred and fourteen thousand, according to
the estimates of some historians. This is only an approximate figure.
The Messenger of Allah (p)-; delivered his famous sermon which
should be memorized by every seeker of knowledge because it is a
proclamation of the basic principles of Islam, and it was the last
sermon of the Propher (s).In it he said:
"0'people, listen to my words, for I do not know if I
will ever meet you again in this place after this year." -
This was one of the miracles of the Messenger of Allah
(i.e., his foretelling his own death) -"0' people, your
blood and your wealth are sacred until you meet your
Lord, as sacred as this day of yours and this month of
yours. You will surely meet your Lord and He will
question you as to your deeds. I have conveyed (the
message to you). He who has a pledge, let him return it
to the one who entrusted him with it. All usury is
abolished, but you have your capital. Wrong not and
you will not be wronged. Allah has decreed that there is
to be no usury and the usury of 'Abbaas ibn 'Abdul-
Mumlib is abolished, all of it. All blood shed during the
Jaahiliyah (days of ignorance, i.e., pre-Islamic period)
is to be left ma-enged. The first claim on blood that I
abolish is that of Ibn Rabee'ah ibn al-ljaarith ibn
'Abdul-Muttalib." -who was nursed among Bani
Layth and killed by Hudhayl. This is the first blood shed
during the hilhiliyuh that I deal with.

Thefarewellpilgrimage 781
0' people, the Shaj~taan despairs of ever being
worshipped in your land, but if he can be obeyed in
anything short of worship he will be pleased, in matters
you may be disposed to think of little account, so
beware of him in your religion.
0' people, postponement of a sacred month is only an
excess of 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 has made sacred, so that they permit what Allah
has forbidden and forbid what Allah has allowed. Time
has completed its cycle and is as it was on the day that
Allah created the heavens and the earth. The number of
months with Allah is twelve, four of u-hich are sacred,
three consecutive and the Rajab of Mudar, which is
between Jumaada and Sha'baan.
0' people, you have rights over your wives and they
have rights over you. You have the right that they
should not let into your house anybody you hate, and
should not commit a clear sin. If they do that, then Allah
allows you to forsake them in their beds and to hit them,
but not with severity. If they refrain from these things,
then they have the right to food and clothing according
to what is reasonable. Treat women kindly, for they are
prisoners with you, having no control of their persons.
You have taken them only as a trust from Allah, and you
have the enjoyment of their persons by the words of
Allah.
So understand my words, 0' people, for I have
conveyed (the message) to you. I have left with you
something which, if you hold fast to it, you will never
fall into error, a plain indication: the Book of Allah and

182 The Most Important Events
the Sunnah of His Prophet. 0' people, listen to what I
say and understand it. Know that every Muslim is a
Muslim's brother, and that the Muslims are brethren. It
is not lawful for any man to take from his brother
anything but that which he gives willingly, so do not
wrong yourselves. 0' Allah, have I conveyed (the
message)?"
The first thing to be noted with regard to the Farewell Pilgrimage is
the huge number of people who attended with the Messenger (gy)-,
from different parts of the Arabian Peninsula, believing in him and
his message, obeying his commands. Only twenty-three years earlier,
they had been idolaters and polytheists, rejecting his principles,
finding his call to Tawheed (monotheism) strange, hating his
condemnation of their idolatrous forebears and his belittling of their
reasoning. Indeed, many of them had taken a hostile stance towards
him, laying in wait to do him harm, plotting to kill him, inciting the
people against him and fighting him with swords and spears. How
could such a miraculous turn-around happen in so short a time? How
could he (x)-I turn these people from ignorance, abysmal ways and
division of idolatry to belief in Allah alone (Tawheed),knowledge of
His attributes and unity-of word and purpose? How could he earn the
love of their hearts after they had borne such hatred towards him and
when they were known for their toughness, harshness and hostility?
No matter how brilliant and clever a man may be, no matter how
strong his character, it is impossible to achieve such a thing in
hundreds of years. We have not heard of such a thing among the
earlier or later generations; undoubtedly this is nothing other than the
sign of a truthhl message with divine support. This is the miracle of
this perfect and comprehensive religion with which Allah completed
His favour to His slaves. and with which He concluded His message
to mankind. through uhich He wanted to put an end to the misery of a
nation which was lost in this life, subject to whims and desires and

The farewell pilgrimage 7 83
tribalism, and to guide it to the path of guidance so that its eyes would
be opened and it would become a leader of other nations, changing
the course of history, ending man's humiliation and replacing it with
wisdom and the Book as a guidance and a reminder to people of
understanding.
One hundred and fourteen thousand people who disbelieved in him,
then they believed in him; who fought him, then they began to submit
to him; who hated him, then they began to love him; who were
rebelling against him, then they began to obey him -all of that
within twenty-three years. Undoubtedly this happened through the
support of Allah. Exalted be Allah far above all that they associate
with Him. His Messenger is above all that the atheists say about him.
Glory be to your Lord, the Lord of Glory, above all that they attribute
to Him. And peace be upon the Messengers. Praise be to Allah the
Lord of the Worlds.
The second thing to be noted about the Farewell Pilgrimage is this
eloquent and precise sermon which the Messenger of Allah
addressed to all the people. The principles which he proclaimed after
the completion of his mission and the success of his leadership
confirm the principles which he proclaimed at the beginning of his
call, when he was alone and persecuted, when his followers were few
in number, weak and oppressed. These principles are firmly
established and do not change, regardless of whether the number of
believers is great or small, whether there is war or peace, defeat or
victory, whether the world accepts the message or turns away,
whether the enemy is strong or weak. In contrast, we know that the
leaders of this world constantly alter their beliefs and principles,
depending on whether they are strong or weak, changing their means
and goals, displaying outwardly something other than what they
conceal inwardly, proclaiming something other than that which they
really believe, appearing at times of weakness in the guise of monks
and at times of strength in the form of wolves. That is because they

7 84 The Most lrnportan t Events
are no more than messengers of their own interests, in contrast to the
Messengers of Allah. There is a great difference between one who
scavenges for carcasses and one who swims in an ocean of light,
between those who strive for the sake of their own selves and those
who strive for the sake of humanity, between the close friends of the
Shaytaan and the close fnends of the Most Mercifbl.
"Allalz is the Wali[Protector or Guardian] of those who
believe. He brirtgs them out.Fom darkness into light.
But as for those who disbelieve, their Awliyaa'
[supporters and helpers] are naghoot False deities
and false leader-s], they bring them out.frorn light into
darkness. Those are the dwellers of the Fire, and they
will abide therein .forever:" (Qur'arz 2: 257)
THE SENDING OF USAAMAH TO PALESTINE
The last thing that the Messenger of Allah (s)did to spread and
protect the call of Islam, and to repel the aggression of those who
wanted to attack the new state and put an end to it was to prepare an
army to go to Syria under the leadership of Usaamah ibn Zayd. He
commanded him to take his army to the border of Al-Balqa' and Ad-
Daroom in the land of Palestine. This army was composed of both
Muhaajireen and Ansaar, as well as Muslims from the areas around
Madeenah, and no one stayed behind. When the army was outside
Madeenah, preparing to set out, the Messenger of Allah ('y) fell ill
with what was to be his final illness. The army hesitated to set out,
waiting for the Messenger to recover and hoping to receive his

The sending of Usaamah to Palestine 185
instructions and advice, but the Messenger of Allah (.& died a few
days later; Allah chose him to be with Him, after he had discharged
the trust and conveyed the message, and prepared the entire Arabian
Peninsula to carry the banner of Islam and spread its culture and
teachings throughout the world, after the army (which would
shoulder the burden of this great trust that would change history) and
the soldiers (who were fit to fight these battles) and the great men
(who were fit to administer its state) had been made ready. May Allah
send blessings and peace upon His Messenger, and reward him
greatly on our behalf and on behalf of all mankind. Were it not for
him and his loyal troops who fulfilled the trust after him, we would
now be far astray.
Allah honoured His Messenger in a way that He had never honoured
any previous Prophet. For He kept him alive until he had seen how
the fruits of his da 'wah and struggle encompassed all of Arabia, and
cleansed it of idol-worship forever; and made those who smashed the
idols with their own hands rejoice in the blessings of Allah Who had
saved them from misguidance. For they had previously worshipped
idols, making their faces dusty by prostrating to them and seeking to
draw closer to Allah through them, and now these same people were
preparing to go everywhere on earth, bringing to people the light of
guidance with which Allah had blessed them. A single generation
that had worshipped idols and lived in ignorance, wasting their
talents, was the same generation that smashed the idols and
established the first Arab Muslim state in the history of Arabia,
bearing the message and having clearly-defined goals, approaching
the powerhl neighbouring nations with the attitude of a teacher and
saviour, proud of the message of guidance, light and goodness that it
carried, feeling pity for the state of ignorance, wrongdoing and
promiscuity to which the other nations had sunk, whereas before
Islam, the Arabs had held those nations in high esteem, feeling
inferior to them on the political, intellectual and social levels. The

186 The Most Important Events
sending of Usaamah was no more than the manifest result of this
blessed mission.
The Messenger of Allah (1)gave the command of this army to
Usaamah ibn Zayd even though he was a young man of twenty years
of age; and the leading shaykhs of the Muhaajireen and Ansaar, such
as Abu Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthrnaan and 'Ali, those who had been the first
to enter Islam and made such great sacrifices for its sake, elders who
were of high status, all marched under the leadership of Usaamah.
This is one of the splendid ways in which Islam sought to erase the
differences in status, age and virtue that exist between people, and of
giving a task to the one who is most qualified for it, regardless of his
age or status. The fact that these great men, the like of whom history
has not seen since, agreed to fight under the command of the young
Usaamah is indicative of the level of refinement that their attitudes
had reached by virtue of the Messenger of Allah (g3)and his
guidance, training and teaching.
The fact that Usaamah was given command over men like Abu Bakr,
'Umar, 'Uthmaan and 'Ali set a great precedent that no nation had
ever seen. This indicates that it is essential to open the field to the
brilliance of qualified youth and enable them to take charge of affairs
if they are fit and able for that. This is a great lesson which, if only the
Muslims had continued to pay heed to it, they could have avoided
many disasters and calamities throughout history which shook the
Islamic state to its core and weakened it. What the Messenger of
Allah (kz)did was supported by revelation from heaven, blessed with
wisdom, insight and farsightedness such as no previous Prophet and
no great man in history, before or since, had been blessed with. May
Allah be pleased with the young man Usaamah, for the Messenger of
Allah (g)had confidence in his ability to lead and his sincere resolve
and good commitment to Islam. May Allah be pleased with him and
make him an example to our Muslim youth.

The death of the Prophet (bpuh) 787
THE DEATH OF THE MESSENGER OF ALLAH (s)
The Messenger of Allah (.%) died when he knew, via the revelation,
that his death was approaching. He bade farewell to the people during
the Farewell Pilgrimage. The Sahaabah were worried that the death
of the Messenger of Allah (.&) was at hand, but Allah grants respite
to none when his appointed time (death) comes (cf. Qur'an 63: 11).
When word spread that the Messenger of Allah (23)had passed
away, the Sahaabah were all shaken and confused, and many of the
greatest Sahaabah, those who had been among the first to become
Muslim, lost their minds with grief. Some of them were unable to
speak or move. One of them -'Umar -drew his sword and
forbade the people to say that the Messenger of Allah (g)had died,
claiming that he had simply gone away and would come back to
them. Abu Bakr was the only one who remained steadfast. He went
close to the Messenger of Allah (&, who lay covered with a sheet on
his bed, kissed him and said to him, "May my father and my mother
be sacrificed for you, 0' Messenger of Allah! How good you are in
life and in death. You have tasted the death which Allah has decreed
for you, and you will never suffer any other death. 0' Messenger of
Allah, remember us before your Lord."
Then Abu Bakr went out to the people and addressed them saying,
"0'people, whoever used to worship Muhammad, Muhammad is
dead, but whoever used to worship Allah, Allah is alive and will
never die." Then he recited the verse:
"Mz~hammadis no more than a Messerlger; arzd indeed
[manjq Messengers have passed away hefore him. If he

7 88 The Most Important Events
dies or is killed. will you then turn back on your heels
[as disbelie,ers].? And he who turns hack on his heels,
not the least harm will he do to Allah; and Allah will
give reward to those who are grateful" (Qur 'an 3: 144)
When Abu Bakr recited this verse, they came to their senses, and it
was as if they had never heard it before. Abu Hurayrah said that
'Umar said: "By Allah, when I heard Abu Bakr recite these words I
was dumbfounded so that my legs would not cany me and I fell to the
ground. Then I knew that the Messenger of Allah was dead."
Here there are two important lessons for us to learn:
The first is that the Snhaabah were devastated by the death of the
Messenger of Allah (%z), SO much so that it was as if death could not
come to him, even though death is the end that must come to every
living being. That was only because their love for the Messenger of
Allah (~3)was so deeply ingrained in their being. The sense of
devastation felt when losing a loved one is commensurate with the
degree of love. We see how those who lose a child or a father will
remain for several days unable to believe their loss, but what love in
this world can match the love that these righteous $a~zaabuhfelt for
the Messenger of Allah (&, through whom Allah had guided them
and brought them forth from darkness into light, changing their lives,
opening their minds and their eyes, raising them to the level of great
leaders? During his life, he had been their teacher,judge and guide, to
whom they had turned at times of calamity, seeking his guidance with
regard to the events that befell them and learning from him the
revelation of Allah, and listening to his teachings. When the
Messenger of Allah (,-) died, all of that came to an end. What loss
could be greater?
The second lesson we learn is that the attitude of Abu Bakr
demonstrated that he was a person who could remain calm and
steadfast at times of calamity, and that this was a quality which none

The death of the Prophet (bpuh) 789
of the other Sahauhah shared. This is what made him the most suited
among the people to be the successor (khaleefah)to the Messenger of
Allah (&. This trait of Abu Bakr's was further borne out during the
apostasy movement in Arabia.
Note: Here ends the summary of the lectures that I delivered on the
Prophet's biography to the second-year students. There remain four
further chapters of this syllabus, but I have not had time to write out
the rest of the chapters, as mentioned in the Introduction. I hope that
Allah will enable me to write the rest of this syllabus.
And the close of our request is, Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the
Worlds.

Symbols Directory
(---:) : Subhaanahu wa Ta 'aaZa -"The Exalted."
(%?) : SaZIa-AlZahu 'Alayhi wa SaZZarn -
"Blessings and Peace be upon him."
(-?&$) : 'Alaj?his-Salaam-"May Peace be upon him."
(4%): Radi-Allahu 'Anhu -"May Allah be pleased with him."
(&%=)-: Radi-Allahu 'Anha -"May Allah be pleased with her."

192 Translitsra n Chart
9 (as vowel)
.I.-
I
I I -(as vowel).. i
ee
(Omitted in initial position)
-
-7-Fathah 1a 1
Dammah
I Double letter 1 !
Sukoon Absence of vowel !

Glossary
'Aalarneerz
Aalihalz
Aayaat
Ahaadeeth
Al-Ma 'roof
Al-Munkar
'Aqeedah
AY-Radwaan
As-Saabiroon
Baatil
Bay 'ah
Bisrnillah
Daa 'iyah
Da 'ecf
Lit. Worlds, Universe; meaning
Mankind, Jinns and all that exists
Sing. Ilah; deities, gods
Sing. Aayah; Signs, proofs,
evidences, verses
Sing. Hadith; Sayings and acts of
the last Prophet (s)
Trustworthy, a nick-name of the
Prophet (g)
Good deeds
Disbelief, polytheism, forbidden,
evil or evil deed
Faith, Islamic Monotheism, tenet,
creed
A level in Paradise
The patient
Falsehood, false, untrue
A pledge (given by the citizens to
their Muslim ruler)
In the Name of Allah
Preacher of Islam
++ : Weak

194 Glossary
Da '-ct.ah
Diyah
Du 'aa '
Faasiqoo~z
Faqeeh
Fiqh
Fitizah
Fipah
Ghazwah
Hasan
Hijrah
Ihraarn
Jaahilijqah
Jihad
Jun~u'ah
KaaJirq
Khaleefah
Preaching, call to Islam
Blood money
Supplication, invocation
Rebelious, disobedient to Allah
P1. Fuqaha '; jurist (of Islam)
Islamic jurisprudence
Torment, trial
Nature, innate character
Military expedition, raid
Good hadith
Migration, Islamic calendar
Two-piece clothing a Muslim wears
while he is performing Hajj or
'Umrah, intention to perform Hajj
If Allah wills, God willing
Night journey of the Prophet ($%)-,
from Makkah to Jerusalem
Ignorance, pre-Islamic, non-Islamic
Lit. Struggle; struggle in the way of
Allah, Holy war
Friday prayer, Friday
PI. Kufaar; Disbeliever
Lit. Successor; Caliph, A title for
the ruler of the Muslim Umrnah
after the Prophet

The Life of the Prophet 195
Khateeh
Kufr
Minbar
Mi 'raaj
Mohsinoon
Muhaajireen
Muhadditheen
Mujaahideen
Mushrikoon
Nafl
Nitaaq
Q@am al-Lajd
Rak 'ah
Sabr.
Jahaahah
The one who delivers sennons
Disbelief in Islamic Monotheism
Pulpit
Ascension, Ascension of the
Prophet (g~)to the throne of
Allah (i~).s
Pious, believers in Oneness of Allah
Sing. Muhaajir; Emigrants, Muslim
emigrants who left their homes at
Makkah and came to and settled at
Madeenah
Sing. Muhaddith; speakers
Sing. Mujaahid; People fighting in
the way of Allah, holy fighters
Sing. Mushrik; Polytheists,
idolaters, pagans, those who
worship deities besides Allah
Arab descendents of Prophet
1smaaLeel
Voluntary acts, voluntry prayer
Belt, girth, scope, limit
Night prayer
A unit of prayer
Patience
Sing. Sahaabi; the Companions of
the Prophet Muhammad (ZS)

Sarl,)criz
Seerak
Shari 'ah
Shaj-taan
Shi 'i
Shirk
Taabi 'een
Tahajj1ld
Tawaaf
Umm al-
MU 'rnineen
Authentic, a term for hadith
terminology
Raiding party, cavalry squadron
Biography
Islamic law
Satan
Shi'ite
Associating others with Allah in
those things which are specific to
Him (i.e., worship)
Followers of the Companions
Optional night prayer
Circumambulation of Ka'bah in
Makkah
Monothiesm, belief in One and only
god (Allah)
Mother of the believers like
'Aa'ishah, Khadeejah, Zaynab
'may Allah be pleased with them
all', i.e., wives of the Prophet (g~)
Revelation, inspiration
Sing. Zaalim; Cruel. violent,
wrongdoers, oppressors
Noon, noon prayer