Time in Makkah before Hijra
“And surely they purposed to scare thee from the land that they
might expel thee from it “
Quran 17:76
Rasulullahﷺ could have migrated, as did some others, to Abyssinia, but he chooses to remain behind and fulfill faithfully the task imposed on him by Allah Rabbul Jalil. Rasulullahﷺ had absolute faith in Allah which gave him the conviction that whatever be vicissitudes of the way, the end would be glorious. Rasulullahﷺ felt that those who were foremost in obstructing his path would, in time, be the first to carry his message far and wide; and he knew that those who are bent upon taking his life would one day be ready and eager to shed their blood for him. So Rasulullahﷺ was not disheartened or dejected but thought it best to give a little respite to the Makkan by diverting his energies to other quarters. It was not that he did so because he was baffled by the stubbornness of the Quraysh; for he was never at a loss even in moments of greater danger.
Therefore Rasulullahﷺ chose to turn his attention to Ta’if, a place forty miles from Makkah, whither he repaired with Zaid binHarithah RA, and invited the people to embrace Islam. But, like the Makkan, the people of Ta’if were not destined to embrace Islam at the first invitation. No other person would be able to have the persistence and strong willpower to continue with his da’wah after all the tribulation he has been through.
But,
the Holy Rasulullahﷺ had so firm a faith in Allah Rabbul Jalalluh and His cause
that he was never disconsolate. Rasulullahﷺ hoped and still hoped that the success would
be his, and that the greater obstacles the more splendid would be the triumph. Rasulullahﷺ was, therefore, greatly embittered when he found that the people of Ta’if not
only refused to hear him but absolutely repudiated his teaching and himself.
With hope still in his heart, he approached an important personage of Ta’if,
and revealed to him the words of Allah; but he, too, turn a deaf ear, and later
on caused the people to jeer at him in the public thoroughfare.
One day they lined the streets, and as he passed pelted him with stones. This went on for three long miles. Yet bleeding and exhausted he marched on until he entered the garden of Utbah bin Rabi’a, a noblemen of Makkah, where he found refuge and prayed to Allah thus in the shelter of the trees:
“O my God, I come to Thee alone to tell my troubles, Thou art the Most Merciful, and the best Protector, I seek Thy shelter; grant it to me and peace to others."
‘Utbah, who was in the garden at this time, seeing Rasulullahﷺ was filled with pity at his condition, sent him grapes by his Christian slave ‘Addas. Stretching his hands to receive the grapes, Rasulullahﷺ uttered these words,
“In the name of Allah”.
The slave, surprised at this, asked the meaning of the
phrases and being informed, at once embraced Islam. ‘Utbah, who was looking on,
warned the slave that it might lead to persecution, but he remained staunch.
After resting in this garden for some time, Rasulullahﷺ proceeded towards Makkah, and halting at a place called Nakla remained there
awhile. The next halt he made at the cave of Hira, whence he sent word to Mut ’im bin Adi that he desired to return to Makkah, and would do so if he agreed to
grant him protection. Mut 'im, though an unbeliever, was a gentleman who not
only agreed to do as he desired but called his sons, and with them, all
armed to the teeth, went to the Kaabah, where they remained on guard till Rasulullahﷺ had finished his obligation there.
The journey to Ta’if is an important event in the life of Rasulullahﷺ;
for it speaks in unequivocal terms both of his spiritual greatness and of his
faith in Allah. The Ta’if expedition is a reflection of the greatness that is amply
observed. A single man, whose own people not only looked down upon him but
expelled him, leaves the city in the cause of Allah, and goes to a place of
unbelievers, like Prophet Yunus as, and calls them to embrace Islam; which shown
that he had absolute faith in his mission.
Soon after his return to Makkah came the days of pilgrimage, and Rasulullahﷺ called on each of the clans coming from afar to perform the
pilgrimage and expounded to them to embrace Islam. The Quraysh, ever ready to
obstruct, were so contrived by reason of their influence, that none of the outsiders
paid much attention to Rasulullahﷺ. The consequence was that whenever he
approached any tribe it contemptuously rejected him. Only two clans treated him
with respect. One said that they liked Islam but dared not give up the religion
and beliefs of their forefathers, while the second promised to embrace Islam if Rasulullahﷺ would agree to them a share in the kingdom which he would realize.
This event, trilling through clans and people, in their hearts, believed in the
ultimate success of Rasulullahﷺ’s undertaking. To the condition as to sharing
his kingdom, Rasulullahﷺ replied, “It depends on Allah to bestow a kingdom and
on whomsoever He likes; therefore I could not and would not promise what is not
in my power.” If personal aggrandizement had been his purpose, as some purblind
critics would have us believe, nothing would have prevented Rasulullahﷺ from
winning not one clan but practically all the clans by the promise of shares in
what was present to be gained. The fact is that the achievement of temporal
power was not his aim, as we observed in the Madinah period, the events of
which prove that Rasulullahﷺ had no desire for worldly gains. Had not his own
people, the Quraish themselves, already offered him the riches of the whole of
Arabia.
Tufayl bin Amru, the chief of a clan, came one day to Makkah. The
Makkan, to forestall Rasulullahﷺ, went to him and told him that he had come at
a time when Muhammad from among them was causing a lot of confusion and
disruption by means of sorcery and magic arts, and that, therefore, to avoid
being mixed up in it would be well for him not to listen to anything Muhammad
might have to say. Tufayl says that he believed the Quraysh, and was determined
to be on his guard, but that one day when passing the Kaabah he saw Rasulullahﷺ offering prayer. This, says Tufail, impressed him so much that he decided to
listen to what this man had to say, thinking that if it seemed to be trumpery
he would of course have nothing further to do with it or him. With this view, he
approached Rasulullahﷺ and asked him to tell him his views. Whereupon Rasulullahﷺ recited to him verses from the Quran and spoke of the theory of the
Unity of God. This convinced Tufayl that Rasulullahﷺ had told him the truth,
and he embraced Islam. Later, when returning to his clan, he begged Rasulullahﷺ to pray for him, so that he might succeed in turning the members of his tribe
to Islam. On his return, however, he converted only two. His wife and his
father, the rest remaining obdurate. Baffled at this he returned to Rasulullahﷺ and thus address him, “ O Apostle of Allah, my tribesmen have insulted me, and
rejected the faith, I offered. Pray that they all may be cursed.” Rasulullahﷺ raised his hand and said “may Allah. guide the tribe of Daus.” This
incident alone would place him on the
pedestal of a height to which no Prophet has attained, for we see in their lives
of them that they all, even including the Prince Of Peace – Jesus Christ- cursed and invoked the
wrath of Allah on those who
ill-treated them. Not even those who
ill-treated them. Not even fig tree escaped.
This, then, was the state of affairs. Rasulullahﷺ was surrounded on all sides by hostile forces. Every attempt of his was frustrated by the Quraysh. The only thing that kept him resolute was the conviction that in the end, the cause of God must triumph. By patience, forbearance, courage, and preaching he had tried to win them over but had so far failed in his attempts to bring about any great measure of success. Yes, he did not abate his efforts, and once, preaching, he happened to meet a few men of the Kharraj clan of Madinah. Having ascertained their antecedents, preached to them the message of Allah and invited them to embrace Islam. Now, these people knew of and expected “that Prophet” as prophesied in the Scriptures. And when they heard and grasped the beauty of the teachings of Rasulullahﷺ they believed, without doubt, he was “that Prophet” (st John 1:19-21)
and none other, and six of them accepted
Islam. The pledge they took was this:
“We will not associate anything with Allah,
“We will not steal,
“We will not commit adultery,
“We will not commit such offenses;
-
Fornication
-
Killing of
Children
-
Calumny
-
Slandering
Will obey Rasulullah ﷺ in all that is right and will be faithful
to him.
On their return to Madinah, much enthusiasm prevailed there over
the new faith, and Rasulullahﷺ’s name becomes a household word. The result was
that great numbers embraced Islam, a dozen of them going to Makkah in the
following years to perform the pilgrimage. But to Rasulullahﷺ the whole year was
one of constant anxieties as to the fate of converts and their efforts. So
when the next year came he was seen anxiously going about looking for someone
from Madinah to give him, the news. At last at “Aqabah” he found twelve men who
received him with respect and honor. These twelve included some who had been
converted the previous year. They gave all the news to Rasulullahﷺ. When
returning, they begged him to send with them someone who would enable them to
preach and spread the faith. Rasulullahﷺ sent Mus’ab bin Umayr ra, who made his
headquarters with As’ad bin Zurarah ra and engaged himself in the task assigned to him. Allah Rabbul Jalalluh was kinder to the Muslims here in Madinah; soon
every house was talking about Islam, and a great number from among the Aus and
Khazraj became converts. In other cases, whole clans embraced Islam in a day. In
Madinah, the history of Islam has been altogether different had not the Jews
taken alarm at its rapid success.
Turning from the encouraging news of Madinah to the happening in
Makkah, we see that the whole year was one of great distress, trouble, and
misfortune. The persecutions of the Quraish became more severe and more ingeniously
varied. The fuel of hatred was added further to their enmity at every piece of
good news from Madinah. Save only for one very remarkable thing the whole year
was disastrous. But it was during this year that Rasulullahﷺ experienced his
“Nocturnal Ascension” or what is called “ The Israq Mi’raj.” There is some
controversy as to whether this “Ascension” was bodily (physical self of Rasulullah ﷺ) or an occurrence in a vision. The Quran speaks of it thus:
Quran Al Isra 17: Ayat 1
(Masjidul Haram – precinct which includes the whole of Al-Haram Makkah Al
Mukarramah, and precinct of Masjidul Aqsa the whole area of Al-Haram Shariff in
Baitul Maqqadis/Jerusalem).
The event of Ascension is that in the night the Angel Gabriel came to Rasulullahﷺ and beckoned him to follow him to the presence of Allah. Rasulullahﷺ in rapture went with Angel Gabriel and passes through the Seven Heavens, wherein each Heaven he met Prophets that had been raised up before him. When he reached the seventh Heaven Gabriel left, saying that he could go no further. Then Rasulullahﷺ continued on his way alone until he reached and felt the nearness of Allah Rabbul Jalalluh. It was here that the duty of prayer five times in a day was enjoined on the followers of Prophet Muhammadﷺ. He was also shown Heaven and Hell.
The Midianites, who became known as Ansaris, agreed to swear
allegiance on any terms, and a fresh oath was taken. However, in spite of all precautions taken
that the Quraysh might not discover this meeting, they were spied on and by the
next morning, the event was known. The Quraysh went camping to ascertain the
truth about the meeting. But it so happened that the Madinites with whom they
conversed were unbelievers. They knew nothing about the meeting. As they denied
the whole event that took place is not proven, the Quraysh returned quite
satisfied. Nevertheless, their fears were roused again. But as the Ansaris had
left for Madinah they could do nothing.
They only succeeded in seizing and torturing one of them who was left
behind. It was fortunate that he had a rich friend in Madinah who was able to
rescue him from the fury of the Quraysh.
By this time the persecution had reached its height and all known measures of torture, and obstructions were meted out to the Muslims. Rasulullahﷺ, fearing that the situation might culminate in a general massacre, advised his followers to seek immediate safety in Madinah. As of that moment, Madinah is known as the city of Yathrib. Under perfect secrecy, the Muslim families in twos and threes left Makkah for Madinah, where they are warmly received.
Early migration to Madinah:
In A.D. 622, Rasulullahﷺ decided that the Muslims should migrate
from Makkah to Madinah. The Muslims were required to proceed to Madinah in
batches.
Sayidina Abu Salamah Abdullah bin Ashhal ra was the first Muslim to
migrate from Makkah to Madinah. He was followed by Sayidina Bilal Ibn Rabah RA and Sayidina Ammar Ibn Yasir ra. Thereafter Saiyidina Umar Ibn Al Khattab RA migrated
from Makkah. While most of the other Muslims left Makkah in secret, Sayidina Umar
Ibn Al Khattab RA publicly declared that he was proceeding to Madinah. He even
challenged the Quraish that if any one of them had the courage to stop him from
going to Madinah, he was welcome to try his strength with him. No Quraish of Makkah
could have the courage to prevent the migration of Umar, and no one accepted
the challenge to measure strength with him.
According to Ibn Asakir, Sayidina Ali ibn Abu Talib ra commented on the migration of Sayidina Umar Ibn Al Khattab RA in
the following terms:
I never knew anyone migrate unless secretly except Umar, for him,
when he resolved on migration, girt on his sword and slung over his bow and
grasped in his hand its arrows, and went to the Kaabah were in its quadrangle
where the chiefs of the Quraish, and he went round about it seven times, then
prayed two raka’at at the station of Abraham, and went to each, one by one, in
their circle and said,
"May the face be foul of
such as desire that his mother be bereaved of him and his child be left an
orphan and his wife a widow, and if there be such a one, let him meet me behind
this valley, but no one followed him”
In Sahih Bukhari, it is stated that some twenty Muslims accompanied Sayidina Umar Ibn Al Khattab RA on the occasion of his migration from Makkah. His companions included Zaid
bin Khattab the brother of Sayidina Umar RA; Said bin Ziad ra, the nephew of Umar and Khunais
bin Hudhaifah the son-in-law of Sayidina Umar Ibn Al Khattab RA (the husband of Hafsa). Other persons who
accompanied Umar included: Amr b Suraqah; Abdullah b Suraqah; Waqid b Abdullah
Tamimi; Khaula b Abi Khaula; Malik b Abi Khallla; Ayas b Bukair; Aqil b Bukair;
Amir b Bukair and Khalid b Bukair.
Ayyash b Abu Rabiah al- Makhzumi and Hisham b Al-Aas b Wail al-Sahmi
also decided to migrate with Umar. They made an appointment to meet at the
thorn tree of Adat of Banu Ghifar about ten miles from Makkah. It was decided
that if any one of them failed to turn up at the appointed place by sunrise on
the day of departure fixed beforehand it would be construed that he was not
coming and had been held back by force.
“Every dwelling place, even if it has been long been blessed,
will one day become prey to unhappiness and misery. All this is the work of
one among us who scattered us, and ruined our affairs.”
If personal safety had been Rasulullahﷺ aim, he could have
gone on to Madinah and none of the Muslims would have objected to it. Rasulullahﷺchoose to remain in Makkah and let those whose safety was his chief
consideration go and find shelter. The Makkan, thus baffled by all attempts,
decided to put an end to Rasulullahﷺ by surrounding his house by night and
killing him early in the morning when it was his custom to come out to say his
prayers. Rasulullahﷺ knew what was coming and was ready for it. For the Divine
Revelation had that day told him of the plot of the Quraysh and ordered him to
leave for Madinah. So he had arranged with Sayidina Abu Bakr RA to meet him at
a certain distance from Makkah. So he arranged with Sayidina Abu Bakar to meet
him at a certain distance from Makkah.
How Rasulullahﷺ managed to escape from the clutches of these hungry
wolves will be told in the next chapter; here again, we highlight the high level
of conviction of the righteousness of his cause, which was that of Allah Rabbul
Jalalluh.
It was a conviction pursued through resolute action that ultimately ended in success. All prophets have had to face hardships, snubs, taunts, and rebukes. But those who suffered by the Prophets of Arabia were more than any. We hear Jesus Christ crying out, “Eli lama Sabachthani” ( “O, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?) But Rasulullahﷺ in greater danger, yet never in despair, spoke to Allah Rabbul Jalalluh. “O Allah to Thee I complain of the feebleness of my strength and my lack of resourcefulness. Thou art Most Merciful of all-merciful. Thou art Most Merciful of all the merciful. Thou art the Lord of the weak. To who, art Thou to entrust me? To a foe who is deadly or to a friend? Not in the least do I care for anything except that I may have thy protection. In Thee, I seek shelter. May it never be that I should incur Thy Wrath, or that Thou should be angry with me? There is no strength, no power except that which we get through Thee.” This of itself speaks volumes and this alone should be sufficient to make the critics refrain from malicious slander against such a personality. We respect all the Prophets and we believe in them, but most of all I admire Rasulullah ﷺ: for my conscience and knowledge tell me that all that other Prophets had taught has now become useless;
“ The old order changed, yielding place o new.”
