HRfcEMlSSARY ELECT

A CONCISE SEERAH OF THE MESSENGER OF ALLAH

Shaykh Akhtar Husayn Faydi Misbahi

Translated by cAbd-Ahmad Amjadi

an AL 1HYA FOUNDATION PUBLICATION

Verily there has come to you a Messenger from among
you; whom your falling into hardship aggrieves, most
concerned for your well being, for the Muslims most
compassionate, most merciful.

9:128
A Concise Sirah of the Messenger of Ai j ai i

Shaykh Akhtar Husayn al-Faydi al-Misbahl

HI
■ Translated by
*Abd-Ahmad

An AI Iliya Foundation Publication

 fa

Ei®cT
The Emissa*y

Content* I

ti on Key II
Trans liter*
s fbre^°r<^ V
ilator
Tt»°sw"" ,^„d *<
to the
preface

Section
ONE
1

Arab,a
The b *11
d of
l

H>J*Z . 2
„*h
2

3
The State of the Arabs
5

Prophets Ibrahim &Isma 11

of the Messenger of Allah 6

The Noble Ancestry

8

Quraysh
8
Hashim

cAbd al-Muttalib
9

Sayyiduna ‘Abd-Allah & Sayyidatuna Aminah & 10

The People of the Elephant 12

SEC'JTON rwo

Blessed Birth and Care 15

 The First Opening of His Blessed ^
First Journey to Sham
17

Section Three ia

Second Journey to Sham

Marriage 23

Reconstruction of the Ka'bah 25

26
Section Four

Cave Hira' & The First Revelation

Karly Propagation of Islam

Oppression by the Quraysh

Migration to Abyssinia - 5 Nabawi

Sayyiduna Hamzah At crpts Islam - 6 Nabawi

Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Faruq Accepts Islam - 6 Nabawi 42

Exile7 Nabawi 44

Visit to Ta’if ~ 10 Nabawi 47

Isr;V & Mi4raj 11 Nabawi 4<

Section Five

53
WMadinah al-Munawwarah
 &

The Em vv
'1 *1

0f Arbi‘ration 55
Gon*
Hyral1 5?
The
Cave Thawr 60

Hundred Camel Bounty

One 62
aI.MadInah al-Munawwarah
ival in
Vrm 63
of al-Masjid al-Nabawi
The Construction 66
Brotherhood of the Companions 68

Section Six

Jihad 73
The Battle of Badr - 2 Hijri 75

The Battle of Uhud - 3 Hijrf 79

The Battle of Banu al-Mustaliq - 5 Hijri 84

The Battle of Ahzab - 5 Hijri 86

The Battle of Banu Qurayzah - 5 Hijri 90

1 he 7reaty of Hudaybiyyah — 6 Hijri 92

The Battle of Khaybar - 7 Hijri 96

The Battle of Mu’tah - 8 Hijri 100

J he Conquest of Makkah al-Mukarramah - 8 Hijri 103

The Battle of Hunayn - 8 Hijri 107

The Battle of Tabuk - 9 Hijri 110

 The Farewell Pilgrimage
10 H '.Hi 5s
Departure from this World
11 Hijri l\2
Section Seven
Ms

Blessed Wives
Children *2\
Uncles 122

Aunts 123

Mu’adhdhins 124

.Animals
125
125
Weapons
126
Section Eight

A Brief Description of the Messenger of Allah

129
Sublime < Qualities and Uniqueness
130
Miracles 132

His Exalted Character and Disposition 134

The Rights of the Messenger of Allah Over His Nation 137

Belief 137

138
Love
139
(>bedience
 EM7SSARV Elect »
Tm

l4b
% Bibliography
Hi
Notes
 Elect
The Emissary

Translator’s Foreword

uii S\ A- ^ ue^*)' vj ju^i

°V' °dji3'j
411 praise is for Allah, the Lord of the Universe, ««</ benedictions and peace he
ufionthe chieftain of the Prophets and Messengers and upon his noblefamily and
his wives, the mothers of the believers, and upon all of his honourable companions

Allah & says to His Messenger tffr:

^lUiJ i>-j VJ ilUU,l U3

did not sendyou but as a mercyfor the entire creation.1

Sayyiduna2 Abu Hurayrah narrates that the Messenger

of Allah $£* said:

et uSj
Indeed I am a gifted* mercy.4

To understand the extent to which he is the mercy

and the grace of Allah particularly to us as Muslims, we
need to learn about him and know who he is. There
have been many siyar* written about the Messenger ol Allah
describing his sublime beauty and character and his

extraordinary life, which is a model for all:

\’S ill! j&j j*l\ Jill of jS t-i- SjJ >1)1 P 'oC J

Indeedfollowing the Messenger of Allah is better for you for someone who is
()
confident oj Allah and the ImR Day and remembers Allah much.
 Translator's Foreword

Those who came before us were aware and conscious of

the fact that true success ties only in following him <%■ -this
was the reason they were truly successful. It is a great shame
that we have become ignorant of this, and it is not unrelated
that Muslims have become dishonoured and looked down
upon today.

Indeed there has been no one who has read about and
nulv understood the life of the Messenger of Allah 3fr, but

been left m awe ot llim ^ ancl ,allcn in love with him $j>.
ITrus, it is now more than ever that we need to learn about

him *

The Emissary Elect is a translation of Rasul e Mukktdr,

a concise sirah of the Messenger of Allah in Urdu, which
highlights the main events in his blessed life. It is therefore
ideal for use as a teaching template in madrasahs (schools), as
well as for mawlid7 gatherings, because it is relatively brief
and it can be covered in a short period of time, or simply as
an introduction to the Messenger of Allah for those who

are not familiar with his blessed life.

We hope that you, O reader, will be inspired by this

concise sirah to read about him » in more depth. We
advise that you read Sirat e Mustafa tit, by ‘Allamah lAbd
al-Mustafa al-A'zami, which is available in 1 -nglish entitled
Muhammad The Prophet of Islam, because many otht i siyar

are misinformative and do not pro\

events. This is the most reliable sirah currently available m

111
The Emissary Elect »

the English language to our knowledge and contains many

proofs in respect to the belli fs of the Ahl al-Sunnah vva
al-Jama'ah regarding the Messenger o Allah to which

others object.

I thank Mawlana Muhammad Husayn al-Qadiri upon

whose request I set upon this task, and everyone else who
gave their support and helped m m.'king this work possible
and successful. We request the reader to contact us if there
are any issues or mistakes; we would appreciate feedback in

any case.

Historians and so-called preachers have too often

attempted to tarnish the reputation of the Messenger of
Allah # and we have become weak in defending his honour.
We live in a time of ignorance and prejudice, and it is through
education that we can be confident in ourselves as Muslims
and make others aware of who the Messenger of Allah

truly is.

I pray this small work is one of great benefit an*

inspiration. May Allah 4* and his Messenger 3$ accept it,
increase and prolong its benefit and make it a means of being
forgiven and being granted the pleasure and intercession of
the Messenger of Allah for myself, those who have helped
and those who read it, amin.

(Abd-Ahmad
#

Rabf al-Awwal 1435

 Translator's Foreword

Preface to the Second Edition

All praise is for Allah, following the success of the first

edition, Al-Ihya has commissioned its reprint. I appreciate

their patience with me and I am grateful to them and to

everyone else who has helped make this second edition.

Apart from general improvements, for this edition,

footnotes have been converted to endnotes, to which
references have been added. We appreciate the feedback
we received, especially the not living of errors. These have
been corrected to the best of our knowledge. I pray Allah &
forgive me my shortcomings, for pardon is reward enough
for this sinful individual.

‘Abd-Ahmad
Safar 1439
 Section Onf.

Tht Lanp of Arabia

The land of Arabia is located in the Middle East and is

surrounded by water on three sides, which is why it is also
jtnown as the (Arabian) Peninsula. To its north are 'Iraq and
Sham (the modern day region that includes Syria, Lebanon
andJordan), to its west is the Ked Sea, to its east is the Persian
Gulf and to its south is the Arabian Sea.

There is hardly any fertile land in the peninsula. It is

mountainous and mainly desert land. It is split into eight

regions:
$ Hijaz (Arabia) ® 'Uman (Oman)
$ Yaman (Yemen) ® Bahrayn (Bahrain)
® Hadramawt « Najd
<§? Mahrah # Ahqaf

Hijaz

Hijaz translates as barrier and it is named so because it

separates the land of Najd (higher ground to the east and
Tihamah ower ground coastal region to the wtst. The

following places of t Lijaz are famous and sacred in Islamic

history:
® Al-Madlnah al-
® Makkah al-
M unavvwarah
Mukarramah

1
1 HE Emissary Elec

® Badr ® Hu nay n
# Uhud ® Ta’if
® Khaybar ® Tabuk
® 'idak ® GhadlrKl um

MAKKAH AL-> ' KA1 RAM AH

M ikkah al-Mukarramah is one of the most famous cities

of Arabia. It is located between Mount Abu Qubays and
Mount Qu'ayqi'an and is surrounded by many other small
mountains and sandy deserts. It was here that the Messenger
of Allah was born and also where he proclaimed his
nubuwwah (Prophethood). Therefore it is also the birthplace

of Islam.

There are many blessed places in Makkah al-Mukarramah,

including:
® Al-Ka'bah al- Mount Arafat
Mu'azzamah m ■
® Cave Hira’
Mount Safa ® Cave Thawr
® Mount Marwah ® Mount Tan'im
® Mina » Ji£ irranah
® Muzdalifah

Ai.-Madinah Al-Munawwarah

Al-Madinah al-Munawwarah is approximately 320

kilometres (200 miles) north of Makkah al-Mukarramah.

It is also a famous city of Arabia and is the city to whu h
the Messenger of Allah migrated4 from Makkah al-
 Section One

Mukarramah to spread Islam with freedom. The Messenger

0f AH ah ^ rests unc*er ( reen Dome in his masjid (al-

Masjid al-Nabawt) in al-Madinah al-Munawwarah.

Al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah had been previously known

as Yathrib but after the Messenger of Allah migrated there,

it was renamed Madlnat al-NabT (The City of the Prophet
$>) which then became al-Madinah (al-Munawwarah). It is

also known as Taybah.

Four and a half kilometres (about three miles) north of

al-Madinah al-Munawwarah is Mount Uhud, the place
where the famous Battle o Uhud took place. It is also the
resting place of the noble uncle of the Messenger of Allah
& Sayyiduna Hamzah who was martyred in the battle.

Quba’ is five kilometres away from al-Madinah al-

Munawwarah and it was here that the Messenger of Allah
& stayed for a few days after the Hijrah. He built the first
masjid in the history of Islam here before proceeding to al-
Madinah al-Munawwarah where lie 11 u n built al-Masjid

al-Nabawi.

The State of the Arabs

Before the Messenger of Allah was born, the state

of the Arabs was dreadful. Ignorance was widespread and
idolatry was common—everyone had their own idol. People
w°uld worship the sun, the moon, stones, trees, rivers and
 £ A

The Emissary Elect

even mountains. They would even worship things made

by themselves. The Ka bah, which had been built for the
purpose of worshipping only Allah &, had 360 idols in it
No one had the courage to speak out against this practice.

The Arabs were known to be very short tempered and

would fight over the smallest of things, which could turn into
disputes lasting many years, even generations. They had no
shame or mercy; they would bury their daughters alive and
they would sacrifice people for their idols. They were ashamed
of women and believed they were for entertainment. Women
were considered as simply property and men had many,
many wives. When a man died, the women were inherited
by his relatives.

The Arabs had no concept of evil—bad-mouthing,

gambling, robbery, looting and war were the norm. Drinking
alcohol had become a part of life and they t bought of neither
halal nor haraml It was as though they were lost in the depths
of ignorance.

However, despite all of this, the Arabs were known for

being courageous, brave and masters of swordsmanship.
I hey were truthful and fulfilled the promises they made.
They would respect and take care o their guests and the\
had no reluctance in slaughtering their best camel to catei
for a guest.
 Section One

Prophets Ibrahim & 1sma'!l

Sayyiduna Ibrahim is one of the greatest Prophets of

Allah & and was born in Iraq. Sayyiduna Ismail s&p, one
of his two sons ,10 is also a Prophet. Sayyiduna Isma'Il
and his mother, Sayyidatuna Hajirah came to Makkah
i \ i karramah and settled there. Sayyiduna Isma'Il m was
blessed with many children, and in a relatively short period of
time, his family had spread across the entire land of Arabia.

At first, everyone worshipped Allah tfe alone, however,

after a few generations, peop!e forgot Allah tte and began

worshipping idols.

Onc 0f the twelve sons of Sayyiduna Isma'Il x& was

named Qaydar. Qaydar lived in Makkah al-Mukarramah
with his family and he was responsible for taking care of the
Ka'bah. This duty was inherited by his son and so forth.

From the descendants of Qaydar, a noble man named

'Adnan became the ruler over the people. A few generations
later, in c 440 AD, a man named Qusayy made a nation of
the Arabs and ruled over them. 1 he rule was then inherited
by his son 'Abd-Manaf and then by his son Hashim. The
leadership was then passed on to Hashim s son Abd al
Muttalib, whose son was Sayyiduna (Abd-Allah, the father

of the Messenger of Allah

The Emissary Elect &

The Noble Ancestry of the Messenger of Allah

The blessed lineage of the Messenger of Allah fro

his noble father’s side:

Sayyiduna Muhammad

the son of Sayyiduna c Abd-Allah ^.

the son of ‘Abd al-Muttalib,* * *

the son of Hashim,

the son of ‘Abd-Manaf,

the son of Qusayy,

the son of Kilab,

the son of Mur rah,

the son of Kacb,

the son of Luwayy,

the son of Ghalib,

the son of Fahr,

the son of Malik, £

the son of Nadr,

the son of Kin an ah,

the son of Khuzaymah,

the son of Mudrikah, 1

the son of Ilyas,

the son of Mudar,

* *

the son of Nizar,

6
 Section One

the son of Ma add}

the son of <Adnan .11

The lineage of the Messenger of Allah & from his blessed

mother’s side:

Sayyiduna Muhammad dfe

the son of Sayyidatuna Amin ah

the daughter of Wahab,

the son of ‘Abd-Manaf,

the son of Zuhrah,

the son of Kilab,

the son of Murrah,

the son of Kacb,

the son of Luwayy .12

The noble ancestors from each side converge at Kilab and

are the same from him .13

^UUI a fj* ixfi- % sH5* && M

And rely upon the Almighty; the Mofl Merciful Who sees you when you sland up
[for prayer]. Andyour movements among those who pro firate [m prayer].H

J\ ^iLji j*&}\ jxi J* > 4$ S

0 Lord\ send benedictions upon the Prophet Muhammad

The Pure, son of the virtuous and of the chafle

The Emissary Elect &

Quraysh

The most noble and famous tribe in Hijaz was that of th

Quraysh, and the Messenger of Allah # came from the best
family within the tribe: the Banti Hashim.

Quraysh is the name given to the strongest water creature

that exists; it is dominant over every other creature one of
the ancestors of the Quraysh, fahr ibn Malik, acquired this
name because he was the strongest and most courageous
person in all of Arabia. His descendants tl >en became known
as Quraysh!.1"

Hashim

i l ie great-grandfather of the Messenger of Allah was

known as Hashim. He was very respectable and of excellent
character, he was particularly generous and kind-hearted.
After his father, cAbd-Manaf. passed away; he became the
custodian of the Kacbah.

One year, Arabia was hit by severe drought and the people
became weak and destitute. Hashim had bought some dry
in ead from Sham and arrived back home in Makkah al-
i amah in the days of Hajj. He slaughtered a camel

and made stew with the meat. 1 le took some of the di \ 'cad,
*1 ; > into small pieces and mixed it in with the stew. He
then fed this to i he people who had come to perform Hajj.
 Section One

His actual name was ‘Amr, however, from that day

onwards, he became known as I lashim (the one who breaks
up bread). 'Must as Quraysh was famous from the children of
Sayyiduna Isma'fl I lashim stood out from the children
of Quraysh.

*Abd al-Muttaub

Hashim married Salmah, the daughter ol the leader of

the Banu Khazraj tribe in al-Madinah al-Munawwarah.

It was in al-Madinah al-Munawwarah that their only son,

Shaybah, was born. Hashim passed away at the age of 25
in Ghazzah (Gaza) during his journey to Sham. This meant
that Shaybah, who later became known as cAbd al-Muttalib,
was brought up in his mother’s home in al-Madinah al-
Munawwarah. He then came to Makkah al-Mukarramah at

the age of around eight.

‘Abd al-Muttalib was very pious and would spend most

of his time in seclusion in the Gave o Hirah < >ne could see
the nur (light) of the Messenger of Allah dy emanating iron
his forehead. He was very respectable and was known lot
his piety. Whenever the people of Makkah al-Mukarramah
facer 1 a problem, they would seek his prayers and n
problems would go away.

Abd al-Muttalib was so kind and generous that not only

he fulfil the needs of the people, he would also take care
Thf Emissary i lect &>

of the birds, which is why he was also known as MuVm

a t *Qyt
(the one who feeds birds). Furthermore, he would prov ]
food and shelter for those who came from afar tn r, _r ?
P^norm
Hajj and he also undertook the job of taking care of ^
Well of Zam-Zam, cleaning it and distributing the bU.
^ Vr

water. He was the custodian of the Ka'bah as well jUst j|L

his noble father, 1 (ashim. He passed away at the age of 120

Sayyiduna Abd-Ai i ah & Sayyidatuna Aminah

cAbd al-Muttalib had ten sons. Of them, five are well

known:
® Sayyiduna Hamzah ^
® Sayyiduna (Abbas
# Sayyiduna (Abd-Allah ^
® Abu Talib
*

® Abu Lahab

Sayyiduna Hamzah and Sayyiduna cAbbas ^ are

known for accepting Islam at the hands of the Messenger of
Allan Sayyiduna cAbd-Allah jgJ. is famous for being the
1 the Messenger of Allah Abu Talib for looking
after the Messenger of Allah and Abu I ,ahab is infamous
for being a staunch enemy of the Messenger of Allah and
Islam.

Of all of the ten sons cAbd al-Muttalib had, Sayyiduna

Abd-Allah was the dearest and the most beloved to

10
 Section Onf

him. Because Sayyiduna ‘Abd-Allah & had the nur of the

Messenger of Allah * illuminating his blessed face, he was
the most handsome of men and matchless in his character.
Evcry woman front the Quraysh desired to marry him but
his father looked tor piety and a noble background as well as
beaut) when marriage proposals were received.

Some Jews of Syria had recognised Sayyiduna4 Abd-Allah

4 as the man who was to be the father of the final Prophet
from the descriptions of' him in their scriptures. They
therefore plotted to kill Sayyidunac Abd-Allah & many times
but were always unsuccessful.

On one occasion, Sayyiduna c Abd-Allah & went into the

desert to hunt, some Jews followed him intending to kill him,
however, Allah & sent some creatures to protect him from
the plotters. The creatures drove the Jews away and returned
him safely to Makkah al-Mukarramah.

Coincidently Wahab ibn cAbd-Manaf was also in the

desert and witnessed all of this unfold. He immediately
became very fond of Sayyiduna <Abd-Allah & and returned
home intending to marry liis daughter, Sayyidatuna Aminah
to him. Through some of his friends, Wahab sent a
marriage proposal to cAbd al-Muttalib for the marriage of
Sayyidatuna Aminah (ft to Sayyiduna 1 Abd-Allah Abd
al-Muttalib found in Sayyidatuna Aminah all of the
qualities he was looking for in a woman woi 111v i »l 1 vm
wife of his beloved son, so the proposal was accepted and at

11
The Emissary Elect m>

the age of 24, Sayyiduna ‘Abd-Allah ^ married SayyidatUn-

Aminah

Seven months before the Messenger of Allah v

born, cAbd al-Muttalib sent Sayyiduna ‘Abd-Allah ^ (
buy dates from al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (or to Sham f0
trade). On his way back, he fell ill and stayed in al-Madinah
al-Munawwarah with his grandmother’s family the Bariu
‘Adi ibn Najjar. At the age of 25 years, he passed away in
al-Madinah al-Munawwarah and was laid to rest in Dar al-
Nabighah.18

The People of the Elephant

During the lifetime off Abd al-Muttalib, a Yemeni Christian

governor named Abrahah ordered the construction of a
grand church in San‘a’ (Sana’a, Yemen) so that people would
start coming to his church instead of going to the Ka'bah
in Makkah al-Mukarramah. However, people did not pay
attention to the church and continued to visit the Kacbah.
This at igered Abrahah so he prepared an army to march on
to Makkah al-Mukarramah and destroy the Kacbah. When
they at rived in Makkah al-Mukarramah, they took away the
camels and livestock of the people. They took 200 or 400
camels that belonged to ‘Abd al-Muttalib as well. Because ol
this, Abd al-Muttalib wanted to meet with Abrahah. A\
■ ■■';'i,j-|f 111 ard that the leader of the Quraysh wished to
meet him, he welcomed him into his tent.

12
 Section One

<Abd al-Muttalib asked Abrahah if the people could have

their animals bat k. Confused, Abrahah replied: “I have come
to destroy the Ka bah and you ask about your animals?”

<Abd al-Muttalib said in riposte: “I have come to discuss

my property with you. The Ka'bah belongs to Allah ^ He
will take care of it. ”

Abd al-Muttalib returned to Makkah al-Mukarramah

with bis camels and made du a to Allah ^ that He protect His
House.19 He then went to the mountains with the Makkans

out of harm’s way.

At the break of dawn the following day, as Abrahah’s army

approached the Kacbah, a swarm of small birds flew over the
army with pebbles in each of their claws and beaks. They
began dropping the stones on to the army, which killed all
of them. The people of Makkah al-Mukarramah witnessing
this began to rejoice.

The army rode on to Makkah al-Mukarramah on

elephants and so they became known as Ashab al-Fil (the
People of the Elephant). This event became very famous, so
much so that that year became known as ! m al-Fil (the Year
of the Elephant).20This incident is mentioned in Surat al-Fil
in the Qur’an.
 Section Two

Blessed Birth and Care

The Messenger of Allah » was born 55 days after the

event of the People of the hlcphant. He was born at the time
offajr (dawn) on Monday 12 Rabr al-Awwal (c 20 April, 571
AD) in his father's home in Makkah al-Mukarramah.21

Usually the child’s father would be the first to be informed

of a birth, however, because Sayyiduna ‘Abd-Allah & had
passed away shortly before the birth of the Messenger of
Allah his grandfather, (Abd al-Muttalib, was called.
He was performing Uiwaf ' at the time so he hurried to the
house and was overcome with joy and happiness. He took
the Messenger of Allah £% to the Ka'bah and supplicated for
him It was fAbd al-Muttalib who named the Messenger
of Allah Muhammad.
*

I lie first person to nurse the Messenger of Allah was

Sayyidatuna Thuwaybah a slave of Abu Lahab. Next
were his blessed mother, Sayyidatuna Aminah and then
Sayyidatuna HalTmah al-Sadiyyah {jL23

It was a custom of the affluent and noble Arabs to send

children to the villages in their formative years so that
they would grow up healthy and learn pure Arabic. Pooi
women would come from the villages and seek wealthy
families o earn as much money as they could for taking caic

15
The Emissary Elect

of their children. Because the father of the Messenger 0f

Allah & had passed away, the women chose not to take him

One poor woman, Sayyidatuna HalTmah al-Sa‘diyyah

* had also come to find a child with a wealthy family hut
without success. She did not, however, want to return empty
handed and so she asked her husband, Sayyiduna Harith ibn
< ah'ljzza al-Sa'di to take the Messenger of Allah <%.

Uttle did they know about what blessings from Allah &
were about to grace them because of the Messenger of Allah
Their animals, which were previously malnourished and
weak, became tl ie most healthy and most energetic of all and
provided for all of the family. Even in periods of drought, the
animals gave plenty of milk. Their entire village was amazed
by this and began to graze their animals on the same land
but this had no effect. They did not realise that it was the
\1 essenger of Allah who was tl e reaso■
were so healthy, not the nutrients in the earth which they
grazed.24

1'he family now loved the Messenger of Allah dearly

and could not bear to give him back. ! lowever, as it was
s

the custom to look after the children for only two years,
they returned with the Messenger of Allah to learn that
Makkah al-Mukarramah had been afflicted with a plague.
1 his pi ovided them with a good reason to keep the N lessengf1
of Allah with hem for what became four more years.

16
 Section Two

The Messenger of Allah ®> once asked his foster mother,

Sayyidatuna Halimah where his foster brothers and sisters
went during the day. Sayyidatuna Halimah % told him
that they went out with the animals to let them graze. The

Messenger ol Allah wished to graze animals as well so

hr <£> began to go out with the animals. This is how he
became a shepherd, a characteristic of all oi the Prophets

Tht First Opening of His Blessed Chest

The first opening o the chest of the Messenger of

\llah $$ occurred during the time he was in the care
of Sayyidatuna Halimah al-Sacdiyyah ^.The Messenger
of Allah went out one day to rear the animals as usual.
At around midday, however, one of Sayyidatuna Hallmah’s
sons ran home and cried to her: “Three men wearing white
clothes came and made Muhammad [$j>] rest on his back.

They then cut open his chest.”

Sayyidatuna Halimah $ and her husband ran to the fields

fearing the worst. They found the Messenger of Allah »

sitting but the complexion of his blessed face had changed.

Sayyidatuna Halimah comforted him and asked about

what had happened. 1 he A esse: ger of Allah said. Thret

men with very clean white clothes came and made nu u Sv on

my back. They opened up my chest and took something out

and replaced it with something else, bu !

17
 i
The Emissary Elect

they were doing this.”25

Sayyidatuna HalTmah $, and her husband became afr

and feared the Messenger of Allah had been affi^
with black magic. They therefore returned the Messenger 0r
Allah (Sfr to his mother. Sayyidatuna Aminah asked them
why they were so quick to bring him & back since ii,
been very keen to keep him £$. Sayyidatuna Halimah told
her about what had happened and how she was afraid the
Messenger of Allah » had been afflicted with black magjf
Sayyidatuna Aminah though, told her that it was not
possible for the Messenger of Allah dv to be a victim of black
magic.

The opening of the blessed chest occurred four times in

the life of the Messenger of Allah The first time was as
described above; the second time was when the Messenger
of Allah && was ten years old; the third time was in the cave
of Hira' before the wahy (revelation); and the fourth time was
on the night of mi 'raj (ascension). Whenever the blessed chest
ol the Messenger of Allah c& was opened, it was filled with
more nur and more hikmah (wisdom). ’*’

FirstJourney to Sham

When the Messenger of Allah {%* was six years of age,

his blessed mother, Sayyidatuna Aminah passed away.
His grandfather, 'Abd al-Muttalib, then took care ol him

18
 Section Fwo

However, his grandfather passed away two years later s„ |„.

.g. then lived under the care ol his unde Abu Talib

The Quraysh were tradesmen and would travel twice in

the year for business. They would travel south to Yaman in
winter and north to Sham in summer. As Abu Talib was also
a merchant, he was preparing for his travel to Sham. When
the Messenger of Allah <M> saw this, he » wished to go along
with his uncle. His untie agreed to take him ■ '•/ and they set
off for Sham.

En route, the caravan stopped at a town called Busra

#

where there was a monastery. In the monastery lived a monk

by the name of Jarjls who was also known as Bahlra. Upon
seeing the Messenger of Allah he realised that he was
the final Prophet who had been prophesied in the r Torah and
the Bible. He invited the caravan over and said to Abu Talib:
‘This is the leader of all of creation, he has been sent as a
mercy to all mankind. I have seen trees and rocks bowing
down to him and clouds providing shade for him. I le also has
the seal of Prophethood between his two shoulders.”

He asked Abu Talib about how the Messenger of Allah

was related to him. Abu Talib replied: I le is my son,”

Bahlra said: uThis cannot be.”

Abu Talib explained: “He is the son of my brother.”

Bahira then asked about the father of the Messenger of

Allah # and Abu Talib answered: “He has passed away.”

19
The Emissary Elect

Bahlra became content with what Abu Talib had t0u

him and then informed him about how the Jews of Si ~
wished to kill the last Prophet. Bahlra feared for the life 0f
the Messenger of Allah 8b and so he instructed Abu Talih
to sell his goods in Busra and return back to Makkah a|
Mukarramah. If they were to recognise the Messenger 0f
Allah 8b they would surely attempt to kill him 8b. Hearing
this, Abu Talib became concerned and sold his goods quickly.
Bahlra gave them food for the journey back and they then
set off for Makkah al-M ukarramah after bidding farewell to
Bahlra.2,
m
Second Journey to Sham

When the Messenger of Allah became a merchant

himself, he » became well-known for his honesty in his
dealings and for this the people gave him the titles of ai-
Sadiq (The Truthful) and al-Amtn ( The Most Trustworthy).

sJ)i\

Sayyidatuna Khadljah % was one of the most noble and

mosi wealthy wonu n of Arabia. Once, she was looking to
employ a person who was honest and air in business; who
better than the Messenger of' Allah could she find? She
therefore asked him ij he would be willing to trade

on her behalf for double what she would pay others. The

Messenger of Allah accepted her offer and joined a trade

caravan headed towards Sham with the goods. Sayyidatuna

k ladljah also sent a slave named Maysarah to serve the

Messenger of Allah dfr.

When the caravan stopped at the town of Busra in Sham,

a monk by the name of Nastura noticed the Messenger of
Allah sitting under a particular tree.

Nastura asked Maysarah about who the man under

the tree was. Maysarah answered: lie lives in Mak !
Mukarramah and is the pride of the Banu Hash mi tribe. His
name is Muhammad.’*
-■>

23
The Emissary Elect c&

Nastura said: “No one other than a Prophet has „

beneath this tree. Sayyiduna ‘Isa m said that no one other

than the final Prophet will rest under this tree after him. h

this redness always present in his eyes?”

Maysarah answered: “Yes.

Nastura replied: “It is him! It is him! I te is the final Prophet!

I hope to be alive when he proclaims his nubuwwah, so I car

bring faith in his religion.

He then presented himself in the court of the ^lessenger

of Allah and said: “I have brought faith in you, and I
testih that you are the one described in the divine scriptures.”

I he Messenger of Allah dfr sold the goods in the markets

of Busra and bought other goods there. It is also in this
market that there was a disagreement with a person over
some trade. The man requested the Messenger ot Allah
to take an oath with the names of Lat and ‘UzzaTThe
Messenger of Allah refused to do so and said: “I have
never taken an oath using their names/ The man became
quiet upon hearing this. He took Maysarah to one side and
told him: ‘This is a Prophet. By Allah, it is he who has been
described in our scriptures.”

u'd back to Makkah al-Mukarramah having

nal profit. Sayyidatuna Khadijah

b^nig vi iy pl< asrd the business done by the Messenger
of Allah paid him v even more han what she had

24
 Section Thrff

promised. The Messenger of Allah * made three business

trips before he » proclaimed his Prophethood: twice to
Sham, which have been mentioned, and once to Yaman.

Marriage

Sayyidatuna Khadljah was an affluent yet widowed

woman. Due to her piety and chastity, she had earned her the
title of al-Tdhirah (The Pure). She had married twice before
but both husbands had passed away. Many of the leaders in
Arabia had asked for her hand in marriage yet she declined.

Sayyidatuna Khadljah & already admired the Messenger

of .Allah £&, having heard of his piety, nobility, honesty and
trustworthiness. When the caravan was about to return to
Makkah al-Mukarramah, she took to the balcony of her
home to watch them enter the city. She became perplexed
as site saw what were two angels providing shade to the
Messenger of Allah $$>.

Maysarah also reported to her what had h appened during

hieir travels as well as the incident with Nastura the monk.
1 his further increased the honour she held for the Messenger

of Allah and inclined her towards marriage.30

jju?j cr^ ^ ^ J/i!

Ijell in love with you because of your excellent character andyour honesK

latuna Khadljah ^ sent a proposal to him

which he presented to the elders in his family. Who would

25
The Emissary Elect m>

turn down a proposal from a woman such as Sayyidatuna

KhadTjah who was chaste, intelligent, noble and rich?
The family accepted the proposal eadily and the wedding
O

took place some days later.

A procession of the bridegroom took p ace in which

his uncles Sayyiduna Hamzah Jk and Abu Talib, as well as
Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddlq were present. Abu Talib
spoke at the wedding and the dowry was 500 dirhams. At
the time of the marriage, the Messenger of Allah was 25
years of age and Sayyidatuna KhadTjah was 40 years old.

They were married for 25 years, until Sayyidatuna

KhadTjah ^ passed away in Makkah al-Mukarramah. She
was laid to rest in jannat al-Mucalla. The Messenger of
Allah loved Sayyidatuna KhadTjah tfk dearly and would
remember her after her departure, mentioning her virtues.

Sayyidatuna KhadTjah ^ gave birth to all o the children

of the Messenger of Allah except for his son Sayyiduna
Ibrahim who was born to Sayyidatuna Mariyah al-
Qibtiyyah

Reconstruction of the Ka'bah

Sayyiduna Ibrahim m and Sayyiduna Ismahl m

constructed a house for the hbadah (worship) of Allah in
Makkah al-Mukarramah upon 1 lis command. It is known as
*

the Ka bah and still exists today, where Muslims from all over

26
 Section Three

the world pilgrimage.

The building and its foundations had become quite old

d weak. The people of ‘Amaliqah, Jurhum and Qusayy
had repaired it but because it was surrounded by mountains,
ain would flood the vicinity of the Ka'bah and this had
weakened its foundations. The residents of Makkah al-
xj krramah had set up a barrier to stop the water from

entering the vicinity but this did not prevent the water from
coping through; such small ef forts would not solve the

problem.

The Quraysh therefore decided to resolve the matter

permanently and make the Ka'bah anew by completely

reconstructing it from its foundations. The work included
strengthening its foundations, making a raised door and a

roof.32The Messenger of Allah <M* also took part in the work.

At the time, the Messenger of Allah was around 35 years

of age.

The honour of placing al-Hajr al-Aswad1* back into the

Kacbah led to a large dispute between the people. This heated
argument lasted four days and almost ended in swords being
drawn. ()n the fifth day, the tribes gathered once again to try

resolve the matter. One elder suggested that they should

wait for the first person who enters the vicinity of the Kacbah

the following morning and accept whatever they decide. All

the tribes agreed to this.
The Emissary Elect

The following morning, people tried to be the first to enter

but when they got there, there was someone already there
They looked and exclaimed all together: “This is Al-Amtn^

No one could deny the honesty and trustworthiness of the

Messenger of Allah » so everyone was happy to see him
^ there. The Messenger of Allah resolved the matter
beautifully by telling each tribe to choose one person from
themselves. 1 le spread his mantle and put the Black Stone
in the middle of it. He then asked the people who were
chosen to take hold of the cloth from the edges. They then
carried the stone in the mantle and when they reached the
t

place where it was to be placed, the Messenger of Allah

put the Black Stone into place himself, with all the tribes
taking part equally.

With this most wise solution, the Messenger of Allah &

saved the people from bloodshed and gave each of the ti ibes
the honour.34

The materials gathered did not suffice for the complete

reconstruction of the Ka'bah and a part of it was left out.
This is known as the Hatlm and it is classed as part oi i 1
Ka'bah.
 Section Foui

Cave Hira’ & The First Revelation

Around three miles from Makkah al-Mukarramah in the

direction of Mina is Mount Nur. On that mountain is Ghar-
Hira' (Cave Hira). When the Messenger of Allah <» became
40 years old, he began to prefer secluding himself from
the evils occurring in Makkah al-Mukarramah, and so he »
would come to this cave to worship Allah He would
sometimes take food and water with him and spend days
in the cave. The cave is still there today and many people
* * * «

Visit It.

Sayyidatuna 'A’ishah narrates that the Messenger of

Allah $$ received wahy initially through good dreams. The
meanings of what he saw in his dreams would become
clear like daybreak.36Then Allah & placed an inclination for
seclusion in his heart and he began to prefer solitude in lave
Hira’.
*

One day, he was engrossed in worship in the darkness

of the cave when the Archangel Jibril 3@ appeared and
urged him uRecite!”

The Messenger of Allah replied: “I am not going to

recite.”37 p

Again, Sayyiduna Jibril 3^ urged: “Recite!”

31
The Emissary Elect

The Messenger of Allah t» responded in

111 tHe SaiTIP Way;
“I am not going to recite.”

Sayyidunajibril m then recited the followi

VCrSfc-

the pen. He taught man what he knew not™

The Messenger of Allah & recited these verses, and

Sayyidunajibril @ went away.

The Messenger of Allah $£> had memorised the revelation

and returned to his home. He was shaken by this and
asked his wife Sayyidatuna Khadijah to wrap him in a
blanket. He described what had happened to her and told
her that he feared for his life. Sayyidatuna Khadijah $
comforted him “Allah ^ will never forsake you; you are
good to your family and help people in need. You feed the
poor and look after guests.”

They went to Sayyidatuna Khadijah5s cousin Waraqah ibn

Nawfal, who was well educated in the Torah and the >ible.
He was now old and blind. When they told him about what
had happened, he said to them: “ This is the angel who came
to I Yophet Musa . I hope 1 am alive at the time when you
proclaim your nubuwwah and the people of Makkah drive
you out so that I may help you.”

32
 Section Four

Shocked the Messenger of Allah responded: “Will

they really drive me out?”

Waraqah confirmed: “Yes, this happened to all the

Prophets before you and the people turned against them.”

EaRIV Propagation of Islam

For a while after the first revelation, further revelation did

and the Messenger of Allah became anxious.
not coint
One day, he went out and Sayyiduna Jibril appeared

and revealed:

Is J&3 5-Aill

0 mantled one, fland up and warn, And magnify only your Lord. And keep
clean your clothes. And flay away from idols /9

It was very difficult to spread Islam because the people of

Arabia were firmly set in worshipping idols. The Messenger
of Allah # decided to spread Islam discreetly Many people
began to accept Islam, of whom the first man to do so was
Sayyiduna Abu Baki al-Siddlq The first woman was the
wife of the Messenger of Allah Sayyidatuna Khadljah
the first child was Sayyiduna cAJi and the first slave was
Sayyiduna Zayd ibn Harithah ^ ,w

1 hose who already felt that idol worship was not right and
*ere searching for the truth accepted I slam readily. However,
t °se who thought they were correct in worshipping idols
did not pay any attention to what the Messenger of Allah
The Emissary Elect

had to say. This way of propagating Islam

continUed fot
three years and the numbers increased steadily
AHah 4 th^
commanded the Messenger of Allah # to
prearh Islam
openly

11 was the custom of the people of Makkah al-Mnk,

UKarramah
to gather everyone at Mount Safa when there was a r . L.
a Pr°oIerr,
or a very important matter that needed to be announced
or
discussed. The Messenger of Allah dy gathered the pe0p je
at
the mountain one day He tM> said to them: “O my people! If
I said to you that there is a large army behind this mountain
that is ready to attack, would you believe me?”

i hey replied in unison: “Yes, we would definitely believe

you

They had seen everything about the Messenger of Allah

and had never found him to lie, ever; he was known
as the most trustworthy and the most honest person among
them. The Messenger of Allah then said to them: “I am
the Prophet of Allah Believe in me. If you do not then
you will not be able to avoid the punishment of Allah 4*.”

Hearing this, the people turned away in anger and

disgust. The people, who used to address him as al-Sadiq and
al~Amin, now began to call him a madman, a magician
and a poet. Even his uncle Abu Lahab said to him “Ma\
you; day be ruined for you. s this for what you have called
us?”41 Allah then revealed Surah Eahab in defence ol the
 Section * our

Messenger of Allah <$>.The Messenger of Allah <*, however,

not disheartened by their response and he continued

was
to persevere in calling people towards Islam.

The disbelievers did everything they could to stop the

of Allah I lowever, all of their efforts were

ineffective so they decided to talk to his uncle Abu Talib.

Thev cominced him to talk to the Messenger of Allah <3$.
nd make him stop his preaching. But to the advice of his
le_to stop preaching for a little while—the Messenger
yt \llah 8b responded: “O my uncle, if these people were to
put the moon in my one hand and the sun in my other hand,

I still would not give up my task of spreading Islam, even it

I had to die for it.

These words affected Abu Talib deeply and he replied:

“Continue doing what you are doing; I will not leave your

side for as long as I live.”

Islam then began to flourish with someone accepting

Islam every day. 42

Oppression by the Qt iraysh

Islam began to grow and the disbelievers were not happy

about this. They began tormenting the Messenger o Allah
^ through various means, including having children throw
stones at him 8b and curse him They would even place
thorns in his path and throw rubbish at him 8b.

35
The Emissary Elect m>

Once, the Messenger of Allah & was perfor •

in the vicinity of the Ka'bah. Abujahl, seeing th>\ ^
friends: “Can anyone bring the entrails of a carnol ^^
them on his shoulders?” Pia

One wicked disbeliever ‘Uqbah ibn Ab! Mu‘T

H stood up
and did so. The Messenger of Allah m> remained in
SaMoh
(prostration) for some time and the insides remained
shouldeis. The disbelievers laughed so hard that they f
to fall over each other. The daughter of the Messenger
Allah t» Sayyidatuna Fatimah $ later came and took the
intestines off his shoulders.

On another occasion, the Messenger of Allah was

performing saldh near the Ka‘bah when the same wicked
disbeliever Uqbah ibn Abl MucIt took some cloth and began
to suffocate the Messenger of Allah ». Sayyiduna Abu
Bakr al-Siddiq ran to cUqbah and pushed him away;
reproaching him: “You will kill someone for saying ‘My Lord
is .Allah ’ *

As well as persecuting the Messenger of Allah #, the

ina(^‘ die Muslims suffer, particularly those who
were poor. They were made to lie on their stomachs in the
blistering heat ai had bou ders placed on their backs. The
disbelievers would use branding irons to scar them. They
would also make them lie on embers of coal that would burn
the skin,44

36
 Section Four

Sayyiduna Bilal ibn Rabah was a slave of another

etched disbeliever, Umayyah ibn Khalf. Umayyah would
,if him up "’ith r°l3f<i and draK through the markets,
whipping him and placing boulders on his back. He was
threatened to be tortured to death but he would reply: “Only

or)r God! Only one God!’” ’The companion Sayyiduna

.^miiiar ibn Yasir & was also persecuted in similar ways,
and his mother, Sayyidatuna Sumayyah became the first
marnT of the Muslims when Abu Jahl thrust a spear into
her womb. His father was also martyred due to the torture
inflicted upon him.

Sayyiduna Abu Fukayhah was the slave of Sayyiduna

Safivan ibn Umayyah JY41’ Ic accepted Islam along with
*
Savyiduna Bilal. When Sayyiduna Safwan found out about

this, he tied a rope around the neck of Sayyiduna Abu

Fukayhah and dragged him through the streets, as well as
laving him down upon scorching sand.

One day, he was dragging Sayyiduna Abu Fukayhah when

he saw a beetle. He said to him: uThis is your lord.”

Sayyiduna Abu Fukayhah became angry and replied:

‘Be quiet, O son of a kafir. My 1 a »rd and your Lord is one,
Allah id” Sayyiduna Safwan then choked Sayyiduna Abu
Fukayhah to unconsciousness, such that people began to fear
1 ,e had passed away.

Maids, including Sayyidatuna Labmah Sayyidatuna

37
The 1 miss ary Elect &

Zinnlrah Sayyidatuna Nahdiyyah ^ and Sa yj

Umm-M Tnays were also punished by their masters ^

Even the affluent Muslims were subjected to persecuti

on
Sayyiduna 'Uthman al-Gham & was punished by his
uncle
but thev remained steadfast.

The Messenger of' Allah said that all previous n

■*■■■> kj

endured such persecution but they remained firm He *

advised his followers to stay steadfast and strong, and said
that Allah & would one day make the Muslims overcome
the kuffdr.

MIGRATION TO ABYSSINIA - 5 NaBAWI48

In the sixth year after the Messenger of Allah proclaimed

his nubuwwah, the unrelenting oppression finally became too
much and the Messenger of Allah iM> told 1 iis companions £
that if they wished, they cou Id travel to Habshah (Abyssinia)
and seek refuge there. 15 Muslims decided to migrate to
Habshah in the month o Rajab of that year:

® Sayyiduna ‘Uthman al-Ghani ibn 'Affan and his

wife, Sayyidatuna Ruqayyah (the daughter of the
Messenger of Allah d£)
® Sayyiduna Abu I ludhayfah and his wile,
Sayyidatuna Suhaylah bint Suhayl
& Sayyiduna Abu Salamah and his wife, Sayyidatuna
Umm-Salamah ^
# Sayyiduna 'Amir ibn Rabfah and his wife,

38
 Section Four

Sayyidatuna Layla bint Abu Hashmah %

& Savy^duna Zubayr ibn al-'Awwam ^
& Sayyiduna Mus'ab ibn 'Umayr ^
^ Sayyiduna ‘Uthman ibn Maz'un ^
& Sayyiduna ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn (Awf ^
$ Sayyiduna Abu Sabrah ibn Abt Ruhm & or Sayyiduna
Hatib ibn ‘Amr
& Sayyiduna Suhayl ibn Bayda*
& Sayyiduna ‘Abd-Allah ibn Mas'ud

In total, 101 companions migrated to Habshah.49

The king of Habshah was cal led Ashamah and was known
by his title, Najashi. He was a Christian, and he was strict yet
ust and merciful. He was well versed in the Torah and the
Bible He allowed the Muslims to stay in his country and they
lived free and safe.

The disbelievers of Makkah al-Mukarramah found

out about this and sent an envoy to Habshah. When the
disbelievers arrived, they honoured the king and requested:
“0 king, some criminals have escaped our land and have
come here to seek refuge, please return them to us.”

Najashi was just, so he sent for the Muslims, allowing them

to speak for themselves. The Muslims elected the brother ol
Sayyiduna ‘All Sayyiduna Jacfar ibn Abl Talib as their
spokesman. He stepped forward but did not j rostrate to the
king. This was against the custom in his court. 1 ie courtiers
reprimanded Sayyiduna Jacfar. ‘T he Messenger ot Allah #

39
The Emissary Eleci

commands us to prostrate only to Allah he replied

He proceeded: “O king! We were ignorant \v

worshipped idols. We did immoral things: we hurt
another; we oppressed the weak and the poor; hut Allah &
sent to us a Messenger to guide us, who called us towards the
true religion. He has taught us to do good; to stay away
from evils; to stop worshipping false gods, and to worship
only Allah A*. We accepted his call and our people turned
against us because of this. This is why we have sought refuge
in your land and now these people want to take us back to
idol worship/’

The king became overwhelmed with sympathy for the

_ _

Muslims by this heartfelt plea of Sayyiduna JaTar al-Tayvar

jgi., yet the ambassadors for the disbelievers attempted one
last time to convince the king: “They hold wrong beliefs
about ‘Isa.”

Sayyiduna JaTar recited verses from Surah Maryam and

said: “The Messenger o Allah has taug it us that Prophet
Tsa was born to the chaste Maryam, without a father. He
was the Servant and Messenger of Allah.”

This moved NajashT so much that he began to shed tears

. He then said: “Indeed the Qur’an and the Bible teach tt

of Allah I testify that there is none worthy of worship bi

Allah and Muhammad is His Messenger. II I had 1
 Section Pour

Lina I would have come to Makkah al-Mukarramah

a„d devoted myself in his service."

tje the11 expelled the envoy of the kuffar from his country
amnesty to his fellow Muslims, promising them that
and gave
ould hurt them under his watch.30
no one w

SaYyipunA Hamzah Accepts Islam - 6 Nabawj

In the sixth year after the Messenger of Allah

jaimoi his Prophethood, the uncle ot the Messenger of

4llah # Sayyiduna Hamzah and Sayyiduna 'Umar al-

Faruq & accepted Islam. They accepted Islam within three

davs of each other, giving Islam great strength.

Sayyiduna Hamzah was a very strong and courageous

man and a talented hunter. Though he was the uncle of the
Messenger of Allah he was only a few years older than
him and was also his foster brother.

As usual he went out to hunt one day and returned

to Makkah al-Mukarramah to be informed
Sayvidatuna Safiyyah A and the slave of Ibn-Jud an that
Abujahl had harassed the Messenger of Allah Sayyiduna
Hamzah became enraged and set out to hud Abujahl

Abu Jahl was near the Kacbah when Sayyiduna Hamzah

A came and fired an arrow at him, whici 1 struck Abujahl on

he face causing him to bleed. Furious, Sayyiduna Hamzah

A said to him: “I have heard you swore at m\ nephew, do
The Emissary Elect a

von not know that I am of that vcrv religion*'’

Sayyiduna Ham/ah & then went home md ;„r

Messenger of Allah » of what hr had donr ,n, "
wished to a crept Islam at his hands. The Messenger
d4 became elated bv this.51 nf Allah

Sayyiduna *11 mar al-Faruq Accepts Islam - 6 N

VRAWf

Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Eariiq ^ was from the noble fatT1|i

of Banu Adi, and he was unrivalled in his strength and
his courage. The Messenger of Allah t» prayed for either
Amr ibn I iisham (Abu Jahl) or Sayyiduna 'Umar al-FSni.,
bn al-Khattab £ to accept Islam and give Islam strength
This prayer was accepted three days after the uncle of the
Messenger of Allah c& Sayyiduna Hamzah jj. accepted
Islam.

Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Faruq ^ was initially very hostile

towards Islam and on the day he accepted Islam, he had
actually set out with his sword with a firm intention ol killing
tilt Messenger of Allah dv. On his way, however, he met
Sayyiduna Nucayrm ibn ‘Abd-Allah who had (unbeknown
10 Sayyiduna Umar al-Faruq JA recently accepted Islam.
|U

Sayyiduna Nu‘aym asked: “Where are you going, A mar

Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Faruq replied: ‘kI am going m kill

51
Muhammad
 Section Four

Trying to put Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Faruq

0
& off this,
Sayyjciuna Nu‘aym responded: “You should first look to your
own home. Both your sister and your brother in law have
13
accepted Islam.

Enraged, Sayyiduna 'Umar al-Faruq ^ then headed

towards his sister’s home where he found them reciting the
Holy Qur’an. This infuriated him further and he knocked on
, ^0O1- Hearing the knock on the door, the people inside
hid in order to escape the wrath oJ Sayyiduna 'Umar al-
Faruq His sister Sayyidatuna Fatimah bint al-Khattab
then opened the door.

Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Faruq & stormed in and began

beating his brother in law. His sister tried to intervene but
Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Faruq & began to beat her as well up
to the extent that she began to bleed. Sayyidatuna Fatimah
then resolutely said: “‘Umar, you may take our lives but Islam
can never leave our hearts.”

Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Faruq j& was amazed to see his

sister s steadfastness and so he asked for t ie Holy Qur an
they were reading. Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Faruq jjSt began to
read and found himself experiencing a dramatic change
inside himself. He became convinced the Holy Qur’an was
die word of Allah He reached the following ayah:

441 h
Believe in A Hah and His Messenger52
The Emissary Elect &

He then wished to meet the Messenger of Allah t

accept Islam so he set off towards the house of Sayyiduna
Arqam j&. L"he people inside saw Sayyiduna fUmar al-Faruq
& approaching with his sword in his hand. No one had the
courage to open the door. Sayyiduna Hamzah who was
also there, said: “Let him in, i:f he has come with a good
intention we welcome him; otherwise he will be killed with

his own sword.’’

As he entered, the Messenger of Allah ^ himself stepped

forward and said: “cUmar, for how long will you fight the
truth? Accept Islam.”

Sayyiduna 'Umar al-Faruq immediately proclaimed

the kalimahsJ. The Messenger of Allah became
overwhelmed with joy and he evoked takbfr. The people
exclaimed: “Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar !”54 so loudly that
their voices echoed in the mountains surrounding Makkah
al-Mukarramah.

Because of Sayyiduna cUmar al-Faruq accepting

Islam, the Muslims now had strength for the first time and
began to worship openly .55

Exile - 7 Nabaw!

rFhe Quraysh were now becoming increasingly desperate

in their attempts to stop the spread of Islam. Not only had
they 'ailed to bring back the Muslims who had migrated to
 Sec tion Four

Abyssinia and were now living and practising in freed

om
but two of the most respectable personalities of Makkah al-
Mukarramah Sayyiduna Hamzah ^ and Sayyiduna CU mar
al-Faruq had now accepted Islam. So much was their
concern and so infuriated they were by the success of Islam
, hat the\ d< cided to impose a (umplete social and economical
boycott against the Banu Hashim. The Quraysh therefore
exiled them altogether to a I lostile area outside Makkah al-
Mukarramah and prevented access to food and water.

The following terms of the sanctions upon the Banu

Hashim were written out and hung in the Ka'bah;

$ No one shall marry into the Banu Hashim.

$ No one shall trade or do business with them.
$ No one shall talk to or socialise with them.
® No food or drink shall be provided to them.

A kafir by the name of' Mansur ibn Tkramah produced the

document and all of the leaders of the Quraysh signed it.

The family of' Band Hashim— -both Muslims and non-

Muslims—were forced to reside in a valley outside Makkah
al-Mukarramah. I lie valley became known as the Valley
of Abu Talib as he too was forced to live in it. This period
was incredibly difficult and unbearable. Food would be so
scarce that the people were forced to eat leaves from the trees
and the dry skins of animals. The children would cry out oi
hunger and thirst yet the kufjar of Makkah al-Mukarramah
showed no sympathy. They had surrounded the valley with
The Emissary Elect &

guards to ensure no food could reach them.56

There were some of the Quraysh who did not lik

had been done to the Banu Hashim and ° '"hat
thf
people to put an end to the boycott. However, thes
fell on deaf ears. ' test*

One day, Abu Talib came to Makkah al-Muk

arramah and
said to the people: “My nephew, Muhammad
s that
the document that hangs in the Ka'bah has been eaten
insects except for the places where the name of Allah 4, k
I13.S
laeen mentioned. I it is so, this boycott should be brought
to
an end and if it is not then I will personally deliver him
to
you.”

Thus, Mutcim ibnc Adi, one of the people who disapproved

of the boycott, went inside and saw that the document was
exactly as the Messenger of Allah had described it. He
brought it out in front of the people and the boycott was
brought to an end. The exile lasted three years.

7 lie hand Mansur ibn cIkramah used to write the

document became paralysed—this was tl le punishment from
Allah upon him for writing the document.”

In the tenth year after the Proclamation of Nubuwwah,

when the people returned from the valley, the uncle ol the
Messenger of Allah Abu ' Ialib became ill and, after eight
months of illness, passed away. Within a week of Abu Ialib
passing away, the beloved wile of the Messenger of Allah
 Section Four

«ayvMatun® also passed away. 1 he two people

most dear to the Messenger of Allah -■% passed away and this

w as very hard upon him T his is why this year is referred

to as ‘Am al-Huzn (the Year of Sorrow).

Visits 10NABAWi

\fter seeing the oppression by the people of Makkah al-

Mukarramah. the Messenger of Allah d$ decided to spread
Tsiam in the nearby cities. He therefore travelled with his
slave Sayyiduna Zayd ibn Harithah to the city of Ta’if,
about 40 miles from Makkah al-Mukarramah.

Ta’if was a city of the rich and prosperous, and the

*

family of ‘Umayr led the tribes. The family consisted of

three brothers: ‘Abd Ya-Layl, Mas'ud and Habib, who were
all invited to accept Islam by the Messenger of Allah t&.
However, they responded impolitely and with disrespect, and

refused to accept Islam. In fact, they gathered a group of

•le and set them to follow him and taunt him The
people also began throwing stones at him so much so that
his blessed feet and sandals became soaked with blood .38

When the pain became unbearable, he sat down for

some respite but they picked him u; by die aims. He

continued to walk and again he was

while being mocked and insulted. Sayyiduna Zayd tried

his best to stop the stones from bitting him yet he too
The Emissary Elect w?

became drenched in blood from his injuries J-V

ntualivy, the
Messenger ot Allah and Sayyiduna Zayd found
refii $ein
a garden.

Despite all of what the people of Ta’if had inflictpj I > ...
them, the Messenger of Allah did not curse them o *
for their ill fortune, but rather he prayed to Allah & '
< * 0
.Allah w*, give them guidance. 'They do not realise whr r
vviio i am;’
The Messenger of Allah spent a month if Ta’if hef
returning to Makkah al-Mukarramah. On the way bad
from Ta’if, he reached a place called Oarn al-ri ha(alih
when an angel came from Allah & and said: “Q Messenger

of Allah Allah has seen what has happened and He

has sent me in your service. If you wish then I will crush
iT

j \ fount
Mount Qifayqfan]

But the Messenger of Allah

-
replied: tkNo. I have hope
that Allah sgfe will create from their children people who will
worship Him fa and stay away from idolatry.”39

Upon hearing about what had happened in Ta'if, the

leaders of Makkah al-Mukarramah held discussions ano
agreed that they would make the Muslims suffer as much as
possil jle. Thus the kujfaro Makkah al-Mukarramah increased
iljeir persecution of the Muslims. 1 fowever, the Muslims dif
not falter in their steadfastness, and the Messenger of
maintained his perseverance in inviting people to Netu-
 Section Foui

The events in I a’if gave the people of Makkah al-

Mukarramah encouragement, and the leaders decided
that the Muslims should be subjected to as much difficulty
as possible so that they become completely weak and
overpowered. However, they remained resolute, and the

Messenger of Allah d$> continued to preach Islam.

One of the ways the Messenger of Allah spread Islam

was that at the time of Hap, when people would come from
II acr0ss Arabia, he would go to them and tell ihem
l 1l)t Islam. There w'ere many annual fairs and fetes such as
ci’kaz. Majinnah and 1 )hu al-Majaz; the Messenger of Allah
$ would go to these and preach there as well. His uncle Abu
Lahab would follow him and say: “(.) people, this is my
nephew Do not listen to him. 1 le has left our religion and he

lies!”60

These efforts of the kuffar did not dissuade or have any

eflect on the Messenger of Allah C&, and Islam began to
spread very quickly across the Arabian Peninsula.

ISRA' & Micraj- 11 Nabawi

Oi ie year before the Hijrah to al-Madlnah al-M unawwarah,

*

u'ben the Messenger of Allah was 51 years of age, .Allah ^

invited him to Isra3 and Mi "rqj. The Messenger of Allah

was taken from Makkah al-Mukarramah to Bayt al-Maqdis

(fuu) and then to the skies; to Jannah,, fahannam, Sidrat al-
The Emissary Elect t»

Muntaha" etc (Mt'raj) during a small part of the night. It Was

in this journey that saldh was prescribed to the Muslims bv
/

Allah &.62

It was the 27th night of Rajah, a Monday, when the

Messenger of Allah was at the house of Sayyidatuna
Umm-Hanl63 ^ when Sayyiduna Jibril » came and awoke
the Messenger of Allah «8\ Sayyiduna Jibril » presented
the Buraq64 and i hey travelled from Makkah al-Mukarramah
to Bavt al-Maqdis in Jerusalem, Palestine, where all of the
Prophets m had gathered that night. The Messenger of Allah
led the saldh with all the Prophets praying behind him
<&, this is why he && has the title of mam al-Anbiya’ (the
Leader of the Prophets 1 he Messenger of Allah dy
and Sayyiduna Jibril then proceeded to journey up to
the skies. All of this happened in a very short period of time,
the Messenger of Allah $$ said that when he returned, his
bed was still warm.

The next morning, the Messenger of Allah told people

about what had happened but the kuffdr would not believe
him dy. 1 hey mocked him and some of them questioned
him about Bayt al-Maqdis and the journey to Jerusalem.
I he Messenger oi Allah answered all of their questions,
silencing tin kuffdr. However, they still did not believe him
V

When Abu Jahl found out about this, he said: “People!

Until now', Muhammad ibn cAbd-Allah has been saying Allah
sends Hjs revelations to him, now he is saying he himself went

50
 Section Four

to Allah and conversed with Him. Think. Is this something

we can believe?

One person went to Sayyiduna Abii Bakr al-Siddiq & and

asked him: “Abu Bakr, do you know your friend Muhammad

ibn ‘Abd-Allah [&] is saying he went to Bayt al-Maqdis,

went up to the heavens and came back in the night? Tell me
can an intelligent person believe in this?”

Sayviduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq & replied: “It he

said this then I believe it to be absolutely true.” When the
Messenger of Allah was informed of this, he gave
Sayviduna Abu Bakr & the title of al-Siddiq (the (champion
J /

of Truth). From that day onwards Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-

Siddiq became known by this title.

 Section !■ vf

Al-Madinah al-Munawwarah

Al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah was known as Yathrib at

the time, and two tribes, Aws and Khazraj, as well as some
Jews lived there. The majority of the people of the two tribes
worshipped idols, while the Jews were people of the hook and had

known about the arrival of a Messenger from the scriptures.

The Jewrs would discuss the advent of the final Prophet
in their gatherings and this was how the tribes also knew
about the signs and descriptions of the Messenger of Allah
The Jews w'ould tell them: “Soon the last Messenger of
Allah will come and you will leave your idols and put an end
to idolatry.”

As was his habit, the Messenger of Allah went to the

plain of Mina at the time of Hajj to call people towards
Islam. He £& was in the area of cAqbah when six individuals
from al-Madmah al-Munawwarah approached him The
Messenger o Allah said that he $$ was a Prophet of
Allah 4k, recited a few verses oi the Holy Qur an and told
them to believe in him and accept Islam. The six looked
at each other and said: “This is indeed the Prophet the Jews
have been talking about. Why should we not believe in turn

before they do?”

They went back to al-Madmah al-Munawwarah and told

the people about the Messenger of Allah

The success of their propagation of Islam to the peop]0

of al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah was that the next year 1 ?
Nabawi), 12 people came to Mina and accepted Islam. I .
also pledged their allegiance to the Messenger of Allah —
this pledge is known as Bay (ah Aqbah Via (the First Pledge
at‘Aqbah). They then requested the Messenger of Allah gfc
to send someone with them who could teach them about
Islam and so the Messenger of Allah && chose Sayyiduna
Mus'ab ibn cUmayr ^ to accompany them to al-Madlnah
al -M u n awwarah.

Sayyiduna Mus'ab made great efforts in inviting

people to Islam, even knocking on doors. This resulted in
many people becoming Muslims every day and Islam even
spreading to the nearby towns.

In 13 Nabawi, about 72 people travelled to Mina and

pledged their allegiance at the hands of the Messenger of
Allah rffr—this pledge is known as Bay'ah Aqbah Thdniyah (the
Second Pledge atcAqbah).

The people invited the Messenger of .Allah to al-

Madlnah al-Munawwarah but the uncle of the Messenger
of Allah Sayv duna ‘Abbas who had not yet accepted
Islam, stood and said: “Muhammad is a respected member
of the Banu Hashim family. We have always protected him
from enemies. If you wish to take him to al-Madinah al-
 Section Five

Munawwarah then you shall have to protect him with your

/

lives. If you cannot do so then let us keep him safe ”

Sayyiduna Barra ibn cAzib ^ then stood up and replied:

AVe have lived under the sword for a long time!”

Sayyiduna Abu al-Haytham & followed him: “We

have an old relationship with the Jews and we do not want
the Messenger of Allah to return back to Makkah al-
Mukarramah after Islam becomes strong."

The Messenger of Allah smiled and said: “Your blood

is my blood, your life is my life, your death is my death, your

enemy is my enemy, your friend is my friend, you are mine

and 1 am yours”66

Court of Arbitration
*

When the Muslims identified al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah

as a place of refuge from the persecution they had to endure

in Makkah al-Mukarramah, the Messenger of Allah #

made an announcement to the Muslims that whoever wished

to migrate to al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah was free to do so.

Sayyiduna Abu Salamah was the first person to migrate

and he was followed by a steady stream of Muslims. A short

while later, only the Messenger of Allah Sayyiduna Ab”

Bakr al-Siddlq Sayyidunac Ali ^ ':

Muslims were left in Makkah al-Mukarramah.

Initially, the kuffdr were happy to see the Muslims

The Emissary Elect t»

Makkah al-Mukarramah thinking it was good to j,av

Makkah al-Mukarramah empty of those who were against
their idols. However, after seeing almost all of the Muslims
leave, some of them began to fear that the Messenger „f
Allah would also go and ready an army to attack them.

The kuffar therefore decided to convene a large meeting at

the Ddral-Nadwah (court of arbitration) with all of the leaders
in attendance. Iblls (Satan), the accursed, also attended this
meeting, appearing in the form of an old man wrapped in a
scarf. People did not recognise him and asked who he was. “I
am a shaykh from Najd; I am here to give my advice to you,"
A

he answered.

The meeting commenced and someone suggested that

the Messenger of Allah be locked in a room and be fed
through a hatch. Iblls did not like this proposal and said:
“That is not a good idea. His followers are loyal and will give
their own lives to free him.”

Someone else suggested exiling the N1 essenger ol Allah

to another city, he 3$ would thus be stopped f rom spreading
Islam in Makkah al-Mukarramah. Iblls became angry and
said: “Curse your idea, do you not know that Muhammad
speaks very persuasively? People become convinced by what
1 le says. I l.e will soon have the whole of Arabia in his control
and he will launch an attack on Makkah and make yon hi>

slaves. Do not speak of exiling him!”

 Section Puve

1 hen Abu Ja111 spoke: I have an idea that no one has yet
considered. We take one man from each tribe and they kill
Muhammad. All of the tribes will be responsible for his death
and the Barm Hashim will not be able to fight all of them.
They will settle for blood money and we will be successful in

our plan.”

IblTs became pleased with this plot and exclaimed: ui his

• what yce will do. There is no better solution than this!”

i lie people in the meeting agreed on tins and conspired

to murder die Messenger of' Allah in this way. However,
\llah & sent Sayyiduna Jibril to the Messenger of Allah
# to inform him of this evil conspiracy.

The Blessed Hijrah

The Messenger of Allah was 53 years old when he

migrated to al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah. Wlien almost all
of the Muslims had moved to al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah,
Allah & instructed the Messenger of Allah to make Hijrah.

I he day he # set off, Allah & sent Sayyiduna Jibril &

to tell the Messenger of Allah not to sleep in his bet1 t nat
night but to set out for al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah. The

Messenger of Allah went to the house of Sayyiduna Abu

Bakr al-Siddiq ^ at noon and asked if he could talk
privately, lie ^ replied: * 1’here is no one in the house but

your wife [Sayyidatuna Wishah &].”

The Emissary Elect at

The Messenger of Allah then said- “a,

Q' gg,
Allah & has permitted me to emigrate to al-\fafj| Kr
ah aU
Munawwarah. ”

Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq & therefo

re rrquestecl to
accompany him and the Messenger of Allah 6
gav-f*
him the honour of travelling with himself a$> to al-Madln
al-Munawwarah. Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq $ ,
number of camels he had fed very well for 80 days and asked
the Messenger of Allah to choose whichever one he at
liked. The Messenger of Allah chose a camel but
insisted
he paid for it. Upon insistence, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr tL
Siddlq accepted the money of the Messenger of Allah %

The elder daughter of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq ^

Sayyidatuna Asma' prepared the camels for the journey,
and the Messenger of Allah employed Sayyiduna cAbd-
Allah ibn Xrayqit ^ as a guide because he knew the routes
well. 'The Messenger of Allah && told him to bring the camels
to the cave injabal Thawr (Mount Thawr) three days from
68
then

The kuffar of Makkah al-Mukarramah hated the

Messenger of Allah but they could not deny his honesty
and trustworthiness and so they still entrusted their valuables
and belongings to him The Messenger oi Allah and
Sayyiduna All ^ were in his home as the plotters surrounded
it. The Messenger of Allah told Sayyiduna ‘All t0
wear his green mantle and sleep in his bed. He also told

58
 Section Five

Savyid1111^ ^ retlirn *ie entrusted valuables to their

res ective owners in Makkah al-Mukarramah when he woke
up the next morning and to then travel to al-MadTnah al-
Munawwai ah himsc 11.

y ‘All was willing to risk his life for the

Messenger of Allah without hesitation. He also said
talking about this night: “There was only one night i was able
to sleep peacefully. That was the night when the Messenger
of Allah told me to sleep in his bed and wake up the next
morning to return the belongings to their rightful owners
and travel to al-MadTnah al-Munawwarah. This was because
1 knew that night that no harm would come to me.”

'The Messenger of Allah i# then came out of the house

reciting the first few verses of Surah Ya-STn and holding
a handful of sand. He placed the sand on the heads of
the individuals intending to kill him $£% and he passed
through them without them even noticing.69 The Messenger
of Allah and Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddlq met and
headed for al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah. After they came out
ol Makkah al-Mukarramah, they stopped in Ghar l hawr
1 lave Thawr: just outside the city.

1 he kuffdr of* Makkah al-Mukarramah had remained

outside the house of the Messenger o Vllah waiting for
the morning to storm in but when morning came, they found
j d m a CA1T jjjfc. in the bed. They now began to search

1 11 k al-Mukarramah and the surrounding areas for the

The Emissary Elect &

Messenger of Allah

Cave i hawr

About four miles on the way to al-Madlnah aj

Munawwarah from Makkah al-Mukarramah is a mountain
railed Mount Thawr, on which there is Cave Thawr. This is
the cave where the Messenger of Allah and Sayyiduna
Abu Bakr al-Siddiq stayed after setting off on the night of
27 Safar, 13 NabawT.
t ^

Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq went into the cave first

to clean it and to cover up the holes in the cave by tearing
some cloth. The Messenger oi Allah $S> then entered and
rested his head on the lap of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq
One hole could not be covered so Sayyiduna Abu Bakr
al-Siddiq placed his foot there. However, a snake came
and bit him. He had been poisoned but he did not move his
leg. thinking it may disturb the sleep of the Messenger of
Allah ».

However, due to the intensity of the pain, Sayyiduna Abu

Bakr al-Siddiq ^ could not hold back his tears and they fell
on to the cheek of the Messenger o Allah which woke
him up. Seeing Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq crying)
the Messenger of Allah asked about what had happened.
Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq ^ told him # that the snake

had bit and poisoned him. The Messenger of Allah $$ ^en

 Section Five

placed his blessed saliva upon the wound which made the
pain disappear instantly.7(1

They spent three nights in the cave, with the son of

Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Sayyiduna (Abd-Allah
^ spending the night guarding the cave. In the morning
he would return to Makkah al-Mukarramah, check on the
plans of the people of Makkah al-Mukarramah and return
inform them about it. The servant ol Sayyiduna Abu Bakr
to
al-SiddTq Sayyiduna 'Amir ibn Fuhayrah would also

come by the cave, grazing goats at night. He would milk the

goats and give the milk to the Messenger of Allah and
Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq ^.71

Meanwhile, the kuffar of Makkah al-Mukarramah were

still in search of the Messenger of Allah *
alter raiding
his home to find that he was not there. They searched
the whole of Makkah al-Mukarramah and its surroundings,
coming to Mount Thawr as well only to see a pigeon’s nest
and a spider’s web covering the mouth of the cave.

Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq heard their footsteps

coming closer and said anxiously: “O Messenger of Allah,
he kuffar are very close now. If they lower their gaze only a
little, they will see us.”

The Messenger of Allah replied: "I )o not despair, indeed

Allah is with us.”7^
"e Emissary Elect &

11 temselves: There would not be a spider’s web or a

ne$t
with eggs in it it someone had gone inside here.”

The Messenger of Allah w and Sayyiduna Abu B

akr
al-Siddlq ^ then exited the cave on 1 RabT al-Awwal
and
continued on their way with Sayyiduna 'Amir ibn Fuhayrah
and their guide, Sayyiduna ‘Abd-Allah ibn TJrayqit,73

One Hundred Camel Bounty

When the kuffdr had become tired searching for the

Messenger of Allah they announced a reward of a
hundred red camels for the one who would capture the
Messenger of Allah Because of this huge bounty, many
people readied their horses and rode far in search of the
Messenger of Allah but to no success. The Messenger
of Allah and Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq ^ at this
point were well on their way to al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah.
and on the second day of their travel, they stopped to rest at
a place called Qudayr.

After recovering, they continued on their journey but

one of the best horse riders of Makkah al-Mukai ramah,
Sayyiduna Suraqah ibn Malik j& had caught up and was
now right behind them. Sayyiduna Suraqah canu - '
close and as he was about to attack the company, his horse
stumbled and he fell off' his ride. This happened again and
on the third attempt not only did he fall but Ins hoise >ank
 Section Five

* to the sand up to its knees and could not escape. Sayyiduna

S jraqah became afraid and realised that he would never be
ble to catch the Messenger of Allah He pleaded to the
Messenger of Allah for safety and the Messenger of Allah
the Mercy for the Entire Universe, asked the ground to

release his horse.

Sa yd dun a Sura q ah wanted the promise o' his protection

in writing and so Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq wrote a
I nllleni guaranteeing bis protection. 1 le returned back to
Makkah al-Mukarramah and turned anyone he met on his
back, telling them that he had tried to find the Messenger

0f 41iah dfr for miles and miles but was unsuccessful.'1

Sayyiduna Suraqah began to admire the Messenger of Allah

/ *

^ after seeing his mercy and might, and he accepted Islam

a few years later./b

Arrival in al-Madinah al-Munawwarah

The people of al-Madinah al-Munawwarah had received

news that the Messenger of Allah dv was on his way to their
city. They began to come out ol their houses to the city limits
every day and look towards the horizon, trying to see if
their most beloved was close, only when the neat became
unbearable would they return to their homes.

One day, a Jew returning to al-Madinah al-Munawwarah

saw the Messenger of Allah ilfr.

63
The Emissary Elec i

He arrived and announced: “O people! The one who

have been awaiting eagerly has come!” ^°U

I lie people rushed out of their homes; overcome with

joy and happiness, they armed themselves and set out to
welcome the Messenger of Allah d&.77

A few miles from al-Madinah al-Munawwarah is Quba’

whose leader at the time was Sayyiduna Kulthum ibn IT.! ,
Js.. Before coming to al-Madinah al-Munawwarah, the
Messenger of Allah 0t> stayed as a guest at his house while
they waited for Sayyiduna ‘AIT Jt, who had returned the
possessions to their rightful owners and was on his way to
al-Madinah al-Munawwarah as well. While in Juba’, the
Messenger of Allah laid the foundations of the first masjid
ever built in the history of Islam, known today as Masjid-
Quba’.78

The Messenger of Allah & stayed in Quba’ for 14 days

and it was a Friday when he set off for al-Madinah al-
Munawwarah.

People lined up on both sides of the road all of the

way from Quba’ to al-Madinah al-Munawwarah, and the
Messenger of Allah » walked, greeting and praying for each
and every one of them. ' I he Madman residents could not
contain their joy—it felt like a day of ‘I'd (celebration).The
people recited poetry lor the Messenger of Allah
 Section Five

plij!' J*.

*IS J! U-j U lUt j£iJI CJrj

Tht full moon has risen upon us from the valley of Wads'!

Gratitude [to Allah *»] is necessary upon us for as long as he who invites towards
Allah ^ invites

^IkJ'

• #
^ij 'jS-1 ktji <h.uli £ *»

0 the one sent to us! You have brought a religion worthy of beingfollowed,
)ou have come and gam honour to the city [byyour arrival so] welcome 0 the Bekl
Inviter!

* e Z

4} vj|—1 4)1 jXi*s

< i« arc dressed in garments of Yemen today after wearing patched clotheSyAllah &
send blessings upon youfor as long as he who drivesfor Allah *■ strives

And the little girls o‘ the Banu Najjar beat duiFs and sang:

* -*■ 1 Jd>-1

We are the children of Najjar

Mostfortunate to have Aiukammad [$*?] as our neighbour

1 hr Messenger of Allah heard this and asked them:

“Do you really love me?” They all replied: “Indeed we do!”
He £& smiled and said: Indeed 1 love you too.”79

Everyone wished that the Messenger of Allah £%• would

slay 10 then home, however, ae kindly declined and.
11 lei ring to his camel Q^swa\ said: “l^et go of her reins:
The Emissary Elect

where Allah & stops her will be where I will stay.”

t -lose to where al-Masjid al-Nabawi is today was the hr

of Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub al-Ansari iiaswa’ stopped i
front of his house, and so this was where the Messenger of
Allah stayed. Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub offered the first floor
of his home to the Messenger of Allah out of respect
however, the Messenger of Allah chose to live on the
ground floor because it would be easier to receive guests.

Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub and his wife were honoured to

have the Messenger of Allah
*
as a guest in their home for
seven months and would provide food for him dy twice a day.
They would take whatever the Messenger oi Allah dy left
and eat the morsels of food, regarding them as an immense
blessing.80

The Construction of al-Masjid al-Nabawi

At the time, there was no designated place where the

Muslims could perform salah in congregation. Thus, the
construction of a masjid became necessary.

Outside the house of Sayyiduna Abu Ayyub al-Ansari &

was some unused land that belonged to two o j )han ' mothers.
It was an ideal location to build a masjid, and they wished to
provide the land or free, however, they accepted money for it
upon die insistence of the Messenger of Allah Sayyiduna

Abu Bakr al-Siddiq paid for the land.81

66
 Section Five

The Messenger of Allah laid the foundations and the

k bcgan, quickly picking up pace. One person would level
w
ground while someone else would bring bricks; others
Id blli|^ the walls, etc. Everyone came together as a
w
unity and took part in the construction work, including
co
the Messenger of Allah t».
Tlic people would sing the following poetry while they

worked:

jkiA

0 Allah, there is no virtue except virtue of the hereafter

H2
So forgive the Ansar and the Muhdjirah

Al-Masjid al-NabawT was constructed with dried bricks,

supported by date-tree trunks as pillars and had a roof made
out of date leaves. The roof would leak when it rained so
the companions ^ placed stone slabs on the ground to
protect themselves from the mud. The masjid was free of
any adornment or decoration, yet elegant in its simplicity. It
measured about 60 metres by 56 metres and faced Bayt al-
Maqdis, the qiblah at the time.

A veranda was also built into one corner, with a rod

made of date leaves. This part of the masjid was called al-
uflal) and made for those companions ^ who did not

much wealth. The Messenger of Allah

wuld provide food for them or take them along when he
The Emissary Elect

was invited to people’s homes. They learned a lot because

they spent most of their time in the masjid, learning to read
and write during the night and memorising the ahadlth of the
Messenger of Allah ^ hcse blessed companions 4 are
known as the Ashdb at-Suffah (Companions of the Veranda,
and number no more than 70. They wet e tie nnes who were
sent to nearby towns to propagate Islam.83

Some notable companions Iron (lie Ashdb al-Sujfah were:

# Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (cAbd al-Rahman ibn
Sakhr)
® Sayyiduna Salman al-Farisi j&
Sayyiduna £Ammar ibn \ asir ^
# Sayyiduna Suhayb al-Ruml
# Sayyiduna Bilal ibn Rabah &

The quarters of the blessed wives of the Messenger of

Allah iM' were constructed at the side of the masjid. They were
approximately ten yards by six yards with a low date-lent
roof and a curtain covering the entrances."4 Before this, they
resided at the house of Sayyiduna Harithah ibn Nu'man

Brotherhood of the Companions

Those Muslims who migrated from Makkah al-

Mukarramah to al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah are known as
al-muhdjir (] 1 nigrant) and those Muslims who already lived in
ai-Madinah al-Munawwarah and assisted the muhajirun axe
known as al-ansdn (helnerf
 Section Fivh

Xhc mtihdjirun came to al-Madlnah aUMunawwarah

leaving their families and possessions in Makkah al-
Mukarramah, which made them F H lnnHy and dependent
at times. The ansdr, therefore, did all they could for the muhdjir
Muslims; accommodating them in their homes and looking
after them. The muhdjir companions were merchants and
businessmen by nature, and they did not want to burden
one with looking after themselves. Thus, the Messenger
of \llah && decided that a firm brotherly tie between the
muhdjn and ansdr Muslims should be created.

One day the Messenger of Allah gathered the people

at the house of Says tduna Anas ibn Malik and addressed
the ansdr. “These muhajirun are your brothers.”

H< dien called one muhdjir and one ansarl at a time and

told them: “Indeed you are brothers to each other."

This i nited the Muslims, and this brotherhood became

stronger than that of biological brothers. The ansdr took
this relationship very seriously and took their respective
muhdjir brothers home with them. They then gathered their
possessions and said: “I Ins is all <'! my wealth; you are my
brother so half of it is yours and hall of ii ; mine.

1 hev split everything equally between themselves, even

their homes and their land.

This tie was unbreakable. An example of its strength can

be found in the brotherhood ol the ansan Sayyiduna Sa d
The Emissary Elect

ibn Rab? and the muhqjir Sayyidunaf Abd al-Rahm~n

Awf After splitting his possessions equally, Sayyidu^
Sacd said to Sayyiduna ‘Abd al-Rahman; “1 have two wi^’
I will divorce the one you would like to marry.”

Sayyiduna ‘Abd al-Rahman replied: “May Allah fe bless

you in your wealth and your family, I do not wish to take one
of your wives. All I want is to be din <tc d to the marketplace ”

Sayyiduna Sa‘d showed Sayyiduna ‘Abd al-Rahman the

way to the famous market of Qaynuqa , where he bought
some butter and cheese. I e then started his business by
trading these and began to visit the market frequently. Allah
& blessed his business so much that he became extremely
wealthy in a matter of days and later got married. He became
one of the wealthiest and most successful businessmen of al-
Madlnah al-Munawwarah. He himse i would say: “Ifl was
to touch sand, it would turn to gold.

Similarly, other muhajirun started businesses: Sayyiduna

Abu Bakr al-Siddiq & opened a fabric shop; Sayyiduna
‘Uthman al-Ghan! would sell dates in the maiktt,
Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Faruq & also started his own business.
Soon the Muslims who had migrated became settled in al-
Madinah al-Munawwarah and no longei
after.

After establishing the brotherhood between the ansar

and the muhajirun, the Messenger of Allah also decided
 Section Fiv

make an agreement with the Jews of al-Madinah al-

Munawwarah. The Messenger of Allah m> invited the Jews
and wrote a document outlining the agreement, which both

parties signed:
The practice of paying compensation to a murder
victim’s family (diyyah) and payment to release a
prisoner (fidyah) shall remain active.

$ The Jews will continue to have freedom of religion.

There shall be no interference in their religious
practices.
® The Jews and the Muslims shall keep a cordial
relationship with each other.
® If one group is attacked, tl le other group shall help in
fighting the enemy.
® If the city of al-Madinah al-Munawwarah is attacked,
both groups shall defend and protect it.

® No one shall help the Quraysh or its supporters.

# I: one groups makes a truce with an enemy, the other

group shall also be bound by it. Phis does not apply to
religious wars.8'’

The Jews did not take long to break the agreement. They
i

:Hjt with the mundfiqun81 of al-Madinah al-Munawwarah and

*

ie Quraysh, all of whom wished for Islam to be destroyed.

 Section Six

JltiM'"'

On 12 Safar 2 H, Allah ^ gave the command to the

Muslims to fight those who attacked them. In Makkah ah
Mukarramah, the Muslims were extremely oppressed and
even a te1' Hip‘&h9 the kuff&T of Makkah al-Mukarrama
, ad not stop causing problems for the Muslims. They even
sent a letter to the leader of the munafiqun in al-Madlnah
al-Munawwarah, cAbd-Allah ibn Ubayy: “You have given
refuge to our enemy Kill him or exile him from al-Madinah,
otherwise we w 11 attack you and kill you and we will take
your wives as slaves.”89

When the Messenger of Allah &y found out about this

letter, l ie went to cAbd-Allah ibn Ubayy and asked him: “Will
you act upon this letter and wage war against your own
brothers and shed their blood? Those who have accepted
Islam in al-Madinah al-Munawwarah are indeed your
t

brothers.”

‘Abd-Allah ibn Ubayy realised the truth in this so he

dm , « *

decided to ignore the letter.

The (luraysh also started plotting an invasion of al-

Madinah al-Munawwarah, making i necessary u > tight back.

The Messenger of Allah iM' was concet nrd lor the safety

of the ansar and the muhajirun and so made two strategic plans

for them to implement:

1. Trade in Syria, which was the source of the livelihood
The Emissary Elect

of the ( uraysh, should be blocked so that the Quraysh

will be forced to call a truce
2. Agreements should he made with tribes that reside
around al-MadTnah al-Munawwarah that they will not
help the 1 Xiraysh attack the city.

The Messenger of Allah sent small groups 0f

companions to the surrounding areas of al-Madlnah al-
M’unawwarah and would sometimes join these groups himself.
These groups would visit the tribes nearby and also look out
for any kuffdr army approaching. They would encounter the
kuffdr at times and this would result in a battle. Some of these
battles are known as ghazuuah and some are known as sanyyah.
A ghazwah (pi ghazawat) is a battle in which the Messenger of
Allah was present, while a battle in which he was not
present is known as a sariyyah (pi. saraya).90

Some historians have said there were between 19 and 27

ghazawat, however, only nine of them involved any actual
physical fighting:91

& The Battle of Badr ® The Battle ot

# The Battle of Uhud Khaybar
® The Battle of ® The lonquest
\! iizab of Makkah al-
® The Battle of Banu Mukarramah
( mrayzah $ The Battle ot
® The Battle of Banu Hunayn
Mustaliq ffi The Battle of Tail

There are also differing opinions as to how many saraya

 Section Six

were i
. Somc scholars say there were 47 and while

others say 11,1

there were up to 66. The first sariyyah to occur
Sarriyah Hamzah ibn Abd al-Muttalib & and the last
tarimh was Sariyyah Usamah ibn Zayd i&.

Battle of Badr 2 HyRi

ToE

Badr is a place about 80 miles southwest of al-Madinah

, j^junawwarah and takes its name from the owner of a
s ecific well in the area. The most important battle in the
history of Islam took place here and it is or this reason that
the battle is known as the Battle of Badr.

The kuffar of Makkah al-Mukarramah were thirsty for tl ie

blood of the Musi ims even after they left the city and migrated
to al-Madinah al-Munawwarah. The Messenger of Allah
decided to attack a trade caravan that was heading towards
Makkah al-Mukarramah, in order to stop the oppression of
the kuffar.

One of the leaders of Makkah al-Mukarramah,

Sayyiduna Abu Sufyan who had not yet accepted Islam,
■

was travelling in the caravan. 1 le sensed that the Muslims

would indeed attack them so he sent a letter to the people ol
Makkah al-Mukarramah seeking their help. He also decided
to change the course of the caravan’s route and travel closer
to the coast.

An army led by Abu Jahl then set off from Makkah al-
The Emissary E:i.bci

Mukarramah intending to fight the Muslims; ho\v(v

before they reached Badr, Sayyiduna Abu Sufyan arrived *'
Makkah al-Mu kar ram ah with the caravan. Sayyiduna
Sufyan therefore sent a lei er to the army telling them that
he had returned safely and that they should therefore return
back to Makkah al-Mukarramah.92 However, Abu [ahi h,lr|
set out with only one inontion: to fight and destr
Muslims, and so he ignored the letter, set up camp in Badr
and prepared the army for battle.93

There were only 313 companions94 in the Muslim army

in this battle, with most of them having no food let alone
weapons, while they were about to face more tl tan 1,000 kuffar
all of whom were fully armoured and carrying weapons. The
Muslims had only eight swords, three horses and 70 camels
between themselves.

At night, some companions joined the Messenger of Allah

to survey the battlefield. The Messenger of Allah used
a knife he possessed to mark the ground and he dy would
say: “This is where such and such a person will be killed
tomorrow.” Thus, the next day they saw that the bodies of
those individuals were exactly where the Messenger of Allah
had foretold.95

I he Messenger of Allah C%> spent the night praying while

everyone else slept. He made the following du%\ O Allah
there are only a few Muslims who are here to spread Your
word and religion. If these Muslims are killed today then no
 Section Si

one will be left until Qiyamah who will worship You, Fulfil the
promise that You have made and bless us with Your grace.96

On Friday 17 Ramadan 2 H, the Muslims and kuffar

met at Badr. The way the Arabs fought was that initially
individuals would fight, so TJtbah ibn Rabfah, who was
the commander, his brother Shaybah and his son Walld
stepped forward from the army of the kuffar. Sayyiduna
<Awf j&, Sayyiduna Mucadh ^ and Sayyiduna ‘Abd-Allah
ibn Rawahah ^ stepped forward to fight from the Muslims.
However, cUtbah shouted: “Muhammad! We do not want to
fight with these farmers! We want to fight the Quraysh.”

these three companions then stepped back and the

uncle of the Messenger of Allah Sayyiduna Hamzah
as well as Sayyiduna CA1I ^ and Sayyiduna 1 Taydah ^
came forward to fight instead. cUtba] then said: “These are
a match for us!” a

Tlie three l )lessed companions si lowed the st rengt 11 of their

man, courage and skill; Sayyiduna Hamzah killed Utbah and
Sayyiduna CA1T killed Walld. Sayyiduna cUbaydah fought

bravely but was struck by Shaybah; wounded, he fell to the

ground. Seeing this, Sayyiduna CA1I ^ ran to his help and

killed Shaybah with a single blow. He then carried Sayyiduna
Ubaydah back to the Muslim line and then everyone joined
the battle.

1 he Muslims won the battle decisively and shattered the

The Emissary Elect

confidence of the kuffar. This was a great

victory f0r
Muslims and the kuffar were left shocked.

Abu Jahl, TJtbah, Shaybah and Umayyah ibn

who were the leaders of the Quraysh, were killed and ^
dead exactly where the Messenger of Allah had fo ^
70 people from the army of the Quraysh were killed and
further 70 were captured.<f'

For the captives, the Messenger of Allah && decide ]

^ to
distribute them among his companions. He told them to treat
the captives well, and it was so such that the companions
would suffice with eating dates and provide meat and other
good food to the captives. It was also decided that if they
paid a certain amount of money to the Muslims, they would
be released. For those too poor to pay, they needed to teach
ten children how to read and write to be freed.

14 Muslims were blessed with martyrdom in this battle:98

1. Sayyiduna cUbaydah ibn Harith &

2. Sayyiduna cUmayr ibn Abl YVaqqas
3. Sayyiduna Dhu al-Shimalayn 41 mayr ibn (Abd-cAmr
j&
4. Sayyiduna cAqiI ibn Abl Bukayr &
5. Sayyiduna Mihja( ^
(y. Sayyiduna Safwan ibn Bayda’ ^
7. Sayyiduna Sa*d ibn Khaythamah ^
8. Sayyiduna Mubashshir ibn cAbd al-Mundhir
9. Sayyiduna Harithah ibn Suraqah ^

78
 Section Six

.Q gayyiduna Mu'awwidh ibn 'Afara' Jr

11 Sayyiduna ‘Umayr ibn Hamam Ji
19 Sayyiduna Rafi ibn Mu'alla &
1S. Sayyiduna ‘Awf ibn 'Afara'
14. Sayyiduna YazTd ibn Harith &

\\ li,n the Muslim army returned from Badr, the daughter

of the Messenger of Allah t&, Sayyidatuna Ruqayyah &
passed away. She was married to Sayyiduna 'Uthman al-
Ghani and had been ill during the battle.

In Dhu al-Hijjah 2 H, the daughter oi the Messenger of

\llah &»■, Sayyidatuna Fatimah & married Sayyiduna 'AIT
Two other battles; the Battle of Qaynuqa' and the Battle
of Sawtq also took place that year.

The Battle of Uhud - 3 Hijri

.Mter the defeat at Badr, the morale ot the Quraysh was

extremely low, however, they still had the burning desire to
defeat Islam and seek revenge. They spent an entire year in
preparation for war and made an army of Sum men, who
set off from Makkah al-Mukarramah to attack al-Madmah
al-Munawwarah.

The uncle of the Messenger of Allah {<$> Sayyiduna

Abbas —who had accepted Islam secretly in al-Madinah
al-Munawwarah after being captured by the Muslims in
the Battle of Badr—had gone back to live in Makkah al-

79
The Emissary Iilect c»

Mukarramah. He wrote a letter to the Messenger of Allah

warning him that a strong army was en route.

After reading the letter, the Messenger of Allah &,

discussed with his companions Jk how best to fight the
approaching army. The elders suggested that the women
and children should he protected in the homes while the
fighting takes place from inside the city. On the other hand,
the south—who, for whatever reason, could not take part in
the Battle of Badr, and were eager to fight for their religion
suggested that it would be best to fight openly outside of the
city. After listening to everyone’s opinion, the Messenger of
Allah went into his home, put on his armour and said to
the people: “Go to the battlefield. If you fight with patience,
we will certainly be victorious.”100

The Messenger of Allah handed the flag of the Aws

tribe to Sayyiduna Usayd ibn Hudayr the flag of the
Khazraj tribe to Sayyi< luna Hubab ibn Mundhir and the
flag of the muhajirun to Sayyiduna ‘All j^.101

The Muslim army numbered 1,0(10 men, however, the

leader of the munafiqun, cAbd-Allah ibn Ubayy, along with
300 men lie had brought with him did not go to fight because
he did not like that the Messenger of Allah had not
approved of his suggestion to fight from inside the city. Now,
only 700 men remained who proceeded to Mount Uhud,
about three miles from al-Madinah al-Munawwarah. It was
uridei the mountain that the battle took place and takes its
 Section Si>

name because of this.1 w

On Saturday 15 Shawwal :i I [, the Messenger of Allah

m, ]ec| the fqjr salah and then organised the soldiers. The
Muslims stood with their backs to the mountain. There
Was a small path leading up to Mount Uhud that could be
used to attack the Muslims from behind so the Messenger
(), \Hah & decided to strategically place 50 archers on the
mountain to prevent such an attack. 1 le d%> also appointed
Sayyiduna ‘Abd-Allah ibn i ubayr ^ as the commander of
the archers and gave strict orders that they were not to leave
their positions, whether the Muslims won or lost, until he
sent someone to bring them down.103

The ( 'uraysh organised themselves in front of the Muslims

and their women began encouraging them with drums and
poetry. Then I ulh.ih ibn Abl T-'lbah, the flag-bearer of the
Quraysh, stepped toward and yelled: “O Muslims! Is there
anyone in you who can send me to Hell or anyone who wishes

to go to Heaven by my sword?

-Yes, 1 am!" Smyrna ‘AH * «* •

voice and, in a single Mow, Sayyiduna 'AH A

head f„,n His body. T*-*

forward and was faced by Sayyiduna ^
Hamzat, I,ad such strength Ihal alihoug ^ ,

on tlie shoulder, his sword cot t m . in battle '-

leached the hips. Thereafter everyone eng
The Emissary Elect

The Muslims fou|tht ^ bla

7e™hdm ,hc “""V of ,h, Qumy.fi, f0„. ™naM »

from ^,i,c 50—- ■>z .tnr*

He attic and lice rom ,he battlefield. Sccine l'<‘

Zr" "* °'hC" **-** lj°oty,

Their commander, Sayyiduna ‘Abd-AUah ibn r„t

mounded them of wfi„ ,he m_^ „ ^ *£

commanded them, however, they did faen to „im ^

" ent to claim their share of the booty.

One of ^ generals of the Quraysh army at the time was

Islim He- .. ^ ° had not yet accepted

. S3W tbS and t0°k advantage by taking his soldiers
on e the path that was now unprotected. Sayyidun, <Abd.
Allah ibn Jubayr and those companions who had decided
to remain in position were martyred and the kuffdr gained
t e upper hand. Now the Muslim army was under attack
from the rear. The fleeing Quraysh army saw Sayyiduna
Khahd ibn Walid’s men attacking the Muslim army so they
immediately turned back to attack from the front

1 he Muslims’ busYin collecting the possessions left behii id

by those who had fled, looked up to see themselves being
attacked from all sides. In a state of chaos and panic, the
Muslims swung their swords to protect themselves, regardless
of who was in front of them. This meant some Muslims were
martyred by their own Muslim brothers' swords.105
 Section Six

Sayyiduna Mus'ab ibn 'Umayr resembled the

Messenger of Allah » and was made the flag-bearer of the
Muslim army. He was martyred and the Quraysh spread the
lie ,]Mt they had killed the Messenger of Allah <#. This left
the Muslims deeply sad; some ran away front the batdefield
while others began fighting with more passion. They said: “If
the Messenger of Allah dv is no longer with us, what is there

left to live for?”101’

After a while, people realised that the Messenger of Allah

& was in fact alive and well I his breathed new life into the
Muslim army and they began to fight back.

The Messenger of Allah was being protected by twelve

blessed companions, but tin person who martyred Sayyiduna
Mus‘ab ibn ‘Umayr forced himself through the group and
struck the Messenger of Allah dfc on his blessed brad. This,
and several other attempts, caused tin- Mrswngrr of Allah
to begin to bleed as well as lose two of his blessed teeth.

The Quraysh began to make many a vaults on the

Messenger of Allah c&, which were all unsuccessful dur to
the huge sacrifices made by companions such as Sayyiduna
Abu Dujanah who used his own back u>> a shield to protect
the Messenger of Allah & from swon i

Sayyiduna Qatadah ibn Nu'man ^ also protected the

Messenger of Allah * froin arrows. ( )ne arrow ^ ^

m hl$ eye' The Messcnger of .Allah « placed the eye back

83
The Emissary Elect m>

into its socket and prayed for it to be restored. It is Saicj

people could not tell which eye had been struck by the arr
and some also said that the one that had been struck her
more beautiful than the other.107

There was no clear victor of this battle. In this battl

^1

33 kuffar were killed and 70 Muslims were martyred. One

of the most significant deaths was that of the uncle of the
Messenger of Allah d$ Savyiduna Hamzah. Sayyidatuna
Hind & (who later accepted Islam) had ordered his killing
and she then cut his liver out and ate it. The martyrdom of
Sayyiduna Hamzah brought gn at sorrow to the Messenger
of Allah t».

The Muslims who passed awa\ in this battle were laid to

rest near Mount l hud. The Messenger of Allah dv would
visit them, and he said that if one says utldm to them, they
will reply until Qtydttwh.

The Battle of Banc al-Mu$tauq - 5 I Juki

In the year 5 H. the Mevsengerof ABah fo received news

that iht‘ leade r ol the tribe of Bami al-Mustuliq, Harith ibn
Abl Dirar, was preparing to fight the Muslims and intended
to attack al-Madinah al-Munawwarah.

I herefore, on 2 Sha'ban. the Messenger of Allah &

appointed Sayyiduna Zayd ibn Harithah as the governor
of al-Madinah al-A iunawvvarah and set off towards the Banu
 <
-Mustaliq with an army. Sayyidun- ^ Stx
ill
a* maHr the flag-bearer of the M„K- _Kakr «'-Sid,
* w l»e Muhaiiw ’ qdl
«d jbn TJbadah & held the flag nf * "n anr> Sayyj,
Sa
mar al-Faruq & was i„ thp
Ufltfff ,he divisjo”"
T e An?Sr-
An?Sr. Say>
SavvinUnS
army and found a spy of the Banf, ^ *«* of thp
then killed. u?tal'n; ls man was

The wives of the Messenger of Allah »

ASshan
ishah up and Sayyidatuna
Sayyid l „,m_e . 'v sayyidatu na
^ —‘"‘'^Hiarnah $
the > fessenger of Allah m> on this expedite ^ ***
A —VAVJII,

_ V —_ *■ "■ * ‘’■I a.

When Harith ibn Abl Dimr and his pe0n|

of the approaching Muslim army and that their si

, • r u lnat th«r spy harl K»
killed, fear
!ear and panic filled their hearts and all
„ f ?f fu'adbepn
^
away. The Muslim army, still en route storm d * ''"
J , , -c mu , luute, stopped at a plaa
place
Muravsi . 1 he ,lfu„ i* i .
called Murays,. The people who lived there confronted th,
Muslims and began
“ firing
o a large number oi
-a- ‘luiuucr of arrows
arrows at
at then
then!
The M uslims then
Muslims then made
made their
their attack
attack and
and a ^.^ the kuff,
defeated , „
:inalp assault.
in a single assault

Seven people from the kujfar were killed and only one
Muslim was martyred. Sayyiduna 'Ubadah ibn Samit &
accidentally mam *'ed Sayyiduna Hisham ibn Sababah ^
after mistaking him as an enemy The Muslims captured 700
enemies along with 2d >00 camels and 5j H>0 goats.10s

J i is bati le has two names: the Battle ol >anu al-Mustaliq,

after the enemy, and 11 ie Battle oi Muraysf, after the location

of the battle.
The Emissary Elect

The Battle of Ahzab - 5 H^r!

1 he Messenger of Allah and the Muslims h

an agreement with the Jews in al-MadTnah al-Mn ^
However, the Jews did not like the Muslims bein^^'
and continually plotted against them, causine® SUCcessful
problems, em ^any

After the Battle of Uhud, the Jews broke the ,».

i * iii»# *

by meeting and colluding with the Quraysh. The trib

Banu Nadir planned to stone the Messenger of Allah » °'
he sent an army to fight them. Seeing the Muslim army
approaching, the people locked themselves in their f0 V
However, the Muslims erected a blockade. The siege lasted
two weeks before the Jews requested safe passage out of the
city and the Messenger of Allah & permitted them to lease
al-M adlnah al -Mu n aw\va rah.

Upon reaching the Jewish stronghold of Khaybar, the

Jews began to believe they were powerful and made contact
with the Quraysh, gaining their support and persuading
■ ii to fight the Muslims. Thus, an army of at least 10,000
men marched on to aJ-Madlnah al-Munawwarah.109

The Muslim army at the time numbered only about

3,000.1 he Messenger of Allah dy discussed how to fight the

enemies with his companions 3^. Sayyiduna Salman al-FarisI

^ proposed the idea that a khandaq (trench) be dug on the
outskirts of al-MadTnah al-Munawwarah and the battle be
 Section Six

fought by staying within the city and defcndin •

ag•reed upon this suggestion and the diovi A EverV°ne

sH>ng
'a began.
,jrgan.
_ »

Ten men were given 100 square-yards each ,

,en yards) to dig to a depth of five yards T, Vards ^
of Allah » also helped in digging thA " Messen^
** ^ tne trench and rh
excavation was complete after twenty davs TK
4 r • i r , y * 1 ^ trench was
only necessary (or one side ol the city bee ai,«.k
, c ‘ ' me other sides
were protected irom attack by houses *,na
, lw drKl narrow alleyways
late trees. 0
and date

After the completion of the trench, the Messenger of Allah

& gathered the women and children within the protection
of the forts oi al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah. The Messenger
of Allah <Sfr then took 3,000 men to Mount Sala£, north-west
of the city, and organised them facing the trench with their
backs towards the mountain.111

The Messenger oi Allah gave the flag of the Muhajirun

to Sayyiduna Zayd ibn Harithah ^ and the flag of the Ansar

to Sayyiduna Sa£d ibn ‘Ubadah

The strategy was something the Acabs had never seen

before. The kuffar were perplexed and wondered how this

battle could be fought. It could not be fought by man-to¬

man combat. Both sides therefore settled in firing arrows and

launching rocks upon each other. The kuffar tried then best

in thinking of a way to cross the trench, however, it was ve

there was no way it could
yards deep and ten yar ! A

87
The Emissary Elect

be done,

One end of the trench was not as wide

as tJle rest, h0
and some of the kuffar managed to cross it by hf>^ever
horses up to the trench and jumping over it. Th^fT"1* ,hpir
the trench was a man called (Amr ibn cAbd ^t01
known for his physical strength. He thrice shouted: Was

someone who will face me?” there

On all three occasions, Sayyiduna ‘All & res .

ibn Abl Talib!” (6 Aii
*

The Messenger of Allah stopped Sayyiduna 'Afi 4

and said: “'All, this is 'Amr ibn ‘Abd-wud!”

But he replied: “O Messenger of Allah I know it is him

h,nI ^ nil I nt! f 1 li In him!” The Messenger of Allah gave
his sword Dhu al-Fiqar to Sayyiduna (A1I tied a turban
around his head and supplicated: “O Allah help <AH”

Sayyiduna CAJI & then stepped forward and confronted

Amr, with the following exchange ensuing:
44 ,
Sayyiduna ‘All Amr.

Amr: ”1 will never accept Islam!"

Sayyiduna CA1I u
Leave the battlefield."
44 n
‘Amr: I cannot do that either.
Sayyiduna ‘All 44
Then prepare to

me.

88
 Sec ion Six

Amr. (laughing) “1 did not think anyone

would have the courage to
challenge me."

Sayyiduna All “1 want to fight you."

‘Amr “What is your name?"

Sayyiduna ‘All “‘Ah ibn Abi Talib.

‘Amr “Son, you are very young

and I do not wish to kill

you
a n
Sayyiduna ‘All But I wish to kill you!

Amr then became angry and climbed d n h i In

horse. He cut the leg of his horse and then began advancing
towards Sayyiduna ‘Alt j&. ‘Amr attacked with his sword
which went through the shield of Sayyiduna ‘All cut
through his turban and produced a cut on his forehead. The
wound was not serious, although i did leave a scar.

“‘Amr, now face my attack!” Sayyiduna All exclaimed,

striking the sword on ‘Amr’s shoulder, which continued
tearing through his body and going through his hips. Amr
died instantly and his body fell to the ground in a heap.112

Then, from the army of the kujfar> Nawfal came forward,

furious and blood-thirsty. He yelled: ‘*\\ ho is courageous
enough to confront me?"

Sayyiduna Zubayr ibn al-‘Awwam rushed towards

him and, with one swing of his sword, killed Naw tl. The
The Emissary Elect &

body of Nawfal had been sliced into two and fell fro

1 I

horse. When the kuffar saw that their bravest and strong?, t

individuals had been defeated so easily they retreated and

stalemate ensued.m

This situation continued for one month, and the Muslims

suffered great difficulties such as starvation during the siege

1 he kuffar army too were becoming worried as their supplies

had also become very' low and feeding at least 10,000 hungry

soldiers was no simple task. It was also winter and therefore

*

very/ cold; a violent storm came one night, blowing the tents
*

of the kuffar aw^ay and scattering their pots and pans. The

kuffar became demoralised and Sayyiduna Abu Suiyan

now the leader of the Quraysh, decided to retreat the next

morning and head back to Makkah al-hlukarramah.1

This batde was not only fought by the Quraysh and the

jews but also by other tribes from Arabia; this is why the battle

is named Ghazwat al-Ahzab (the Battle of the Groups). It is

also known as the Battle of Khandac, in reference to the

trench.

The Battle of Banu Qurayzah - 5 HijrI

The Messenger of Allah had only just arrived home,

taken oil his armour and bathed when SayyiduiiaJibrfl ^

came to him and said: “O Messenger ol Allah >ou

have put - lown your weapons l »ut we Angels have not. Allah &
 Sec ion Six

commands that you march on to the tribe of Banu * Xirayzah

because they went against the agreement and undoubtedly
supported the kuflar in the Battle of Ahzab/'m

So the Messenger of Allah announced to his

companions not to take off their armour or put down
their weapons but to proceed towards the Banu Qurayzah.
The Messenger of Allah prepared himself and mounted
his horse Luhayf.,l6The army stopped at a well of the Banu

Qurayzah."7

The Banu Qurayzah were very well prepared to fight.

When Sayyiduna ‘All approached their forts, they began
insulting the Messenger of Allah &>. The Muslims besieged
the forts and this remained for one month. Eventually the
Jews could not bear the suffering the siege infiicte< 1 upon them
and requested that Sayyiduna Sa‘d ibn Mu*adh j& made the
decision regarding their fate. Although Sayyiduna Sa d had
been fatally injured in the Battle of Ahzab, he proceeded to
the Banu Qurayzah to make his decision: Those who were
able to fight should be killed, the women and children taken
as prisoners, and the possessions of the Banu Qurayzah
should also be taken and distributed among ! ue Muslims.

When the Messenger o! Allah dv listened to hi decision,

he dy said: UQ Sa‘d, indeed you have given the same verdict
as Allah!”1,8

Thus, the judgement was carried out to protect the

11ie Emissary Elects

Muslims from the betrayal and treachery of the R

Qurayzah. 1 he leader of the Jews, Huyayy ihn Akhtah

said his final words: O Muhammad, I swear by Allah, 1 d ’

not regret bearing enmity towauls you. It is true that Allah

abandons the one who abandons Him. Pi "|>le, this is not a
time to be distressed. It is the command o Allah in the Torah

that the Banii Qiirayzah shall perish. This is a punishment

from Allah upon the Banu Isra’Il."'1

The Treaty of Hudaybiyyah - 6 Hijri

The treaty made at Hudaybiyyah was very important and

is one of the most significant events to take place in Islamic

history

The Muslims yearned to see the Kacbah and perform tawdj

around it. They would say: “When will Allah ^ give us that

day when we will see the blessed place of the remembrance

of Allah that our father [Prophet Ibrahim built?”

Seeing this longing of his companions jjjt, the Messenger

of Allah wore his ihrarn and set ol with 1,400 Muslims

towards Makkah al-Mukarramah in 1 >hu al- Ja'dah 6 H,

The Messenger of Allah knew that the Quraysh

would not let the Muslims perform Simrah and would N

their path; he $y therefore decided to take the road lt‘ss

ravelled by people and reached a place called Hudaybiyyah.

Hudaybiyyah is about one day’s journey on foot imm

 Section Six

Makkah al-Mukarramah«

The Muslims set up camp there and the Quraysh were

readv to fight, however, the Muslims were in the state o! ihram,

hen one cannot even kill a fly. Considering the situation,
the Messenger of Allah decided that it would he best
to reach an agreement with the Quraysh rather than fight
,v nl i\c therefore sent Sayyiduna "Uthman al-t rhanT

to Makkah al-Mukarramah to propose a peace treaty.

i , (hiraysh did not listen to what Sayyiduna "Uthman

al-Ghani ^ had to say. However, because he was honoured
and respected greatly by the Quraysh, they told him that they
would allow him to perform both the tawaf of the va'bah
and i«f20 but they would not allow the Messenger o: Allah
r% to enter Makkah al-Mukarramah. Sayyiduna ‘L tin nan
al-Ghanl & told them that it was impossible for himself to
perform 'Umrah while the Messenger of Allah was s ill at

Hudaybiyyah.

The conversation between Sayyiduna. Uthman al-

Ghanl & and the Quraysh became heated, which le> o the
Quraysh preventing Sayyiduna cUthman al-Gh.mi ^ horn
leaving M akkah al-Mukarramah. At Hudayl )iyyah, a rumour
hat Sayyiduna c Uthman al-Ghanl had been killed by the
Quraysh then spread among the Muslims.

Upon hearing about this, the Messenger of Allah

announced that i: this was the case, it would be i ^
The Emissary Elect

for the Muslims to avenge the martyrdom of Sayyidur,a

‘Uthman al-Ghani I lie Messenger o)' Allah £& then sat

under an acacia tree and addressed his companions A: “q

my companions, promise me that you will he supportive and

loyal to me until your last breaths.” All ol the companions dt

gave their hand in the hand of the Messenger of Allah {%>

swearing their allegiance and vowing to be faithful to him

This pledge is known as Baycat al-Ridwan, which has been

mentioned in the Qur’an:

Indeed Allah was pleased with the believers when they were swearing
allegiance to you under the tree121

After this pledge, news reached the Muslims that Sayyiduna

‘Uthman al-Ghani was alive and well.122 However, the

Quraysh became worried and afraid upon hearing that

the companions had sworn an oath at the hands

Messenger of Allah They therefore sent Suhayl il
as an ambassador to reach an agreement with the Messenger

of Allah d$.

A treaty was then drafted with the following terms:

® The Muslims shall return back to aTMadlnah al-

Munawwarah without performing ‘Umrah this year.

# The Muslims shall be allowed to perform T miah

the following year but shall only be able to stay fof a

maximum of three days.

 Section Six

$ The Muslims shall only arm themselves with swords

but they shall remain in their sheaths.

& The Muslims who are residents of Makkah al-

Mukarramah shall stay in Makkah al-Mukarramah,
*

but if any Muslim chooses to return to Makkah al-

Mukarramah from al-Madmah al-Munawwarah, they
shall not be stopped.
® If a person migrates to al-Madmah al-Munawwarah,
they shall be returned. If a person moves to Makkah
al-Mukarramah, they shall not be returned.

® The tribes of Arabia are tree to choose which of the

two sides they wish to support.

This treaty seemed apparently disadvantageous to the

Muslims and some companions were surprised that these
conditions were agreed upon. However, this treaty benefited
the Muslims a great deal: they were allowed to propagate
Islam freely now; the kuffdr now began to understand what
Islam was truly about, etc.123

The consequence of the pact was that within two

years, Islam had spread to every house 1 told of Makkah al-
Mukarramah and people began to accept Islam in nultitudes.

At tire beginning ol the next year, the Messenger of ;Mlah

^ sent ambassadors to various rulers of other nations,
inviting them to Islam:

® Hiraql (Heraclius'l. Emoeror of Rome

i he Emissary Elect

® Khusru ’amez, Emperor o! Persia

# Muquqis, Ruler of Egypt
® NajashT, King of Abyssinia
® Huzah, King of Yamamah
® Harith al-Ghassanl, Governor of Ghassan
k

Some of these leaders accepted Islam while others did

not. However, Islam had now reached these kingdoms.124 In
accordance with the agreement, the Muslims returned later
in the year to perform Himrah,
m
ii

The Battle of Khaybar - 7 HijrI

Khaybar is located about 18* > miles north of al-Madlnah

al-Munawwarah. It was the centre for the Jews of Arabia
in the time of the Messenger
O
of Allah There were verv/
strong forts oi the Jews in Khaybar, whose ruins can still be
found today. Of the fortresses, the following eight are the
most well-known:
# Kutaybah Natat
# Nahm % Sa<b
® Shaqq Watikh
#

® Qamus Sulalim

In reality, these fortresses were eight castles and together

they made up what is known as Khaybar.12’

Alter making the agreement with the Quraysh at

Hudaybiyyah, the Muslims felt at peace with them. However,
 Section Sc

the threat from the Jews still existed. Failure in the Battle of
Khandaq and the exile of the tribe of Banu Nadir left the
jcws with a burning desire for revenge.

Inevitably, the Jews began preparations for an attack

on al-Madinah al-Munawwarah, determined to cause
the destruction and downfall of the Muslims. When the
Messenger of Allah found out about their plan, he &
decided to take an army of l 600 companions to Khaybar to
stop the Jews in their tracks, appointing Sayyiduna Siba< ibn
‘\rfutah n as the governor of al-Madinah al-Munawwarah

in his absence.126

Hie Muslim army reached the outskirts of Khaybar at

night and entered the city in the morning. When the Jews
saw this they exclaimed: “By God! Muhammad [$fr] has

come with an army!”127

The Jews prepared for confrontation and the Muslims

prepared themselves for battle too.

First, the Muslims took the NaSm foriress, ai 1 tin

gained control of other forts easily. Qamus was the strongest
and most protected fortress where Marhab, the most
courageous Jew, was in charge. Taking over this fortress was
therefore going to prove to be the most challenging.

On the first day, the Messenger of Allah sent a battalion

under the command o Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-S Idiq
however, they were unable to even reach its entrance. On the
The Emissary Elect &

second day, Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-Fariiq & was sent with -

group of men but they too were unsuccessful. The Messenger
of Allah then said to his companions 3^: ' tomorrow, I
will give the flag to that person through whom Allah & wju
grant us victory.”

All the companions woke up the next morning wishing they

would be the one to be graced wit 11 such an honour, however,
the Messenger of Allah enquired as to where Sayyiduna
CA1I was. The companions informed the Messenger of
Allah that he had some ailment in his eye. The Messenger
of Allah called for Sayyiduna CA1I ^ and then placed his
blessed saliva into his eye, which immediately alleviated the
pain and cured it such that it was as though there had never
been any ailment ever before. The Messenger of Allah
then gave Sayyiduna CA1T ^ the flag, which was made from a
black scarf oi' Sayyidatuna ‘A’ishah $Ll2H

Sayyiduna c All went to (,)amus and invited the Jews

to Islam, however, his invitation was answered with stones
and arrows being fired at him. Marhab then came forward
and said: “Khaybar knows well that i am Marhab. I am
armoured, and am brave and experienced.”

SayyidunacAll ^ responded: “I am the one who has been

named Haydar (lion) by his mother. I am as fearsome as a
wild lion.”

Marhab then attacked Sayyiduna ‘AIT J*,, swinging his

 Section Sd

sword at him, but Sayyiduna 'All ^ was able to block this

and then launched his own attack. * (e struck his sword, Dhu
al Fiqar, on Marhab’s head, slicing through to his teeth. This
killed Marhab instantly who fell to the ground.129

Seeing the body of Marhab hit the floor, the, [ews were
then compelled to attack Sayyiduna 'All altogether but
he fought his way through them. Many of the stronger Jews

were defeated with Dhu al-Fiqar. The shield of Sayyiduna

CAK & broke during this battle so he unhinged the door o\
the fortress and used it as a makeshift shield. With his bravery
and strength, he was able to win over the brt of Qarnus,
making the Muslims victorious in this battle. The dooi
Sayyiduna 'All had used to shield himself from the Jews
was so large and so heavy that even 40 strong men together
could not lift it after the battle ended.13U

fhe Messenger of Allah dfr decided that the Jews should

be exiled just like the Banu Nadir were, however, the Jews
pleaded with him not to exile them but to leave the land in
their possession in exchange for half oi the crops grown on
it. fhe Messenger of Allah accepted their request and so
when it was the time for harvest, he would send Sayyiduna
Abd-Allah ibn Rawahah to KLhaybar. Sayy iduna Abd-
Allah would split the harvest into two equal pans and then
ask the Jews to choose whichever part they wanted to keep.
This fairness and gracious etiquette of the Messengei of
Allah amazed the Jews.131
I he Emissary Elect

In this battle, 93 Jews were killed and 15 companions were

martyred, fhe Messenger of Allah married Savyidatuna
Safiyyah & soon after this battle.132

The Battle of Mu*tah - 8 HijrT

Mu’tah is the name of a town in Sham, (t was there that a

famous bati le between the Muslims and Christians took place
The reason ihis battle took place was that the Messenger of
Allah had sent Sayyiduna Harithah ibn cUma\ r ^ with
a letter inviting the Amir o Busra to Islam. However, the
governor of Balqa', Shurahbil ibn cAmr al-Ghassanl, who
was die \dcegercnt of the Amir of Busra, intercepted the letter
and tortured Sayyiduna Harithah to death. The Messenger
of Allah dv was deeply saddened when he received the
news of Sayyiduna Harithah’s martyrdom.133

Due to the fact that killing an ambassador was completely

criminal, the Messenger of Allah sent an army of 3,000
companions, appointing Sayyiduna Zayd ibn Harithah
as the commander. He also told the army that should
Sayyiduna Zayd be martyred, Sayyiduna Jacfar ibn Abl Talib
w°uld lead them; if he was also martyred then Savyidu -ia
Abd-Allah ibn Rawahah ^ would command them; and
should he too be martyred then the commander should be
chosen by the army.134

When seeing oft the army, the Messenger of Allah

 Section Six

. d them that there would be people worshipping in

churches and that they should not harm them. 1 e also
told them not to kill women, children or the elderly and he
forbade even cutting a tree down.' I ’he Messenger ol Allah
to t0]d Sayyiduna Zayd to go to the place where Sayyiduna
Harithah had been killed and invite the people to Islam: “If
they accept Islam, that will be good, but if they do not, fight

them.”
The army reached Mu’tah to see that they were up against
an enormous and formidable army of about 200,000 men.
The Muslims, despite being so greatly outnumbered, put
heir faith ii 1 Allah absolutely and marched valiantly into

war.135

In accordance with the order o: the Messenger of

Allah $§% Sayyiduna Zayd stepped forward and invited the
Christians to Islam but the response was a hail of arrows

raining down upon him.

The Muslims therefore organised themselves and began

to fight, with Sayyiduna Zayd also coming of! his horse and
* , t* # *

fighting with the Muslims. Sayyiduna Zayd (ought valiantly

f

hut he alone was no match for the huge number of attacks he

faced and was martyred.

* hus, just as the Messenger of Allah £4* had instructed,

Sayyiduna JaTar took the flag of [slain in his right hand,
^hile fighting, he lost his right arm and therefore carried
The Emissary Elect &

the flag in his left hand. He then lost his left arm too so he
carried the flag between his legs, and it was in this state that
he too was martyred. Sayyiduna rAbd-Allah ibn Rawahah
then took the flag of Islam but he too was martyred, just as
the Messenger of Allah to had foretold.1%

S he army then discussed who they should appoint as

their commander and came to an agreement that Sayyiduna

Khalid ibn Walld Ji was worthy so he was given the flag
of Islam. 1 te showed the expertise and prowess he possessed
P

in warfare by leading the Muslims to an emphatic victory

despite them being outnumbered by about seventy to one.

Though the Messenger of Allah was in al-Madlnah al-

Munawwarah at the time, he was seeing the battlt tianspir
and described the events to his companions & as they
unfolded:
fayd took the flag but he was martyred, then Jafar took the flag but he too
was martyred, next Abd-Allah took the flag, however, he was martyred as
well. Now the flag in is the hands of a sword from the swords of Allah
Khalid ibn Walld.13'

The Messenger of Allah was visibly upset when

informing the companions about the battle, with teais
flowing down his blessed cheeks.

In this battle, many < Christians were killed and 12 Muslims

were martyred:

® Sayy i< luna Zayd ibn Harithah A

» Sayyiduna JaTar ibn Abl Talib &
 Section Six

$ Sayyiduna 'Abd-Allah ibn Rawahah

$ Sayyiduna Mas'dd ibn Aws &
$ Sayyiduna Wahab ibn Sacd
$ Sayyiduna ‘Ubbad ibn Qays &
g Sayyiduna Harith ibn Nu'man &
$ Sayyiduna Suraqah ibn 'Umar
$ Sayyiduna Abu Kulayb ibn 'Umar
$ Sayyiduna Jabir ibn Umai
® Sayyiduna 'Umar ibn Sa'd j&
$ Sayyiduna Hubajah al-Dabbi

The Messenger of Allah did not take part in this battle

and it is for this reason that it is referred to as Sariyyah rather

than Ghazwah.

The Conquest of Makkah al-Mukarramah - 8 l

One of the conditions in the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah was

that the tribes of Arabia were free to choose which of the two
sides they wished to support. i he t lk mu Bakr decided
to become an ally ol the ( uraysh while the Banu Khuza ah
supported the Muslims. These two ribes lived close to each
other near Makkah al-Mukarramah, and a very dec] ■«. i 1
had existed between them for a long time.

Alter the signing of the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, there

kujjdi

of the (^hiraysh. However, only three years later, the Banu

f launched a brutal attack on the Band Khuza ah in
The Emissary Elect di-

revenge for past grievances, slaughtering many of them. Th

Quraysh had given their complete support to the Banu Bakr
in this attack and therefore breached the terms of the Treaty
because an attack on an ally was considered an attack up0n
oneself.139

After being mercilessly attacked by the Quraysh and

the Banu Bakr, the leader of the Banu Khuza{ah, 'Amr ibn
Salim, travelled to al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah with 40
men and informed the Messenger of Allah of what had
happened.140

The Messenger of Allah then sent a delegate to the

Quraysh giving them three options:

1. Pay the blood money for those who have been

murdered,
2. Separate yourselves from the Banu Bakr, or
3. Accept that the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah is now
dissolved.

Having considered their options, ()urtah ibn cAbd-(Amr

spoke on behalf of the Quraysh and rejected the first two
options, opting for the third. However, the Quraysh quickly
realised they had made a bad decision and sent Sayyiduna
Abu Sufyan to renew the treaty. Sayyiduna Abu SufQn
tried his best but he was unsuccessful.141

On Wednesday I > Ramadan, the Messenger ot All^h

^ set off for Makkah al-Mukarramah with 10 000 soldiers
Before reaching the city, the army set up camp in the 0
 Section Si

1 Zahran. The Messenger of Allah then ordered

^UlT , eVfn person to light their own fire. The 10 000 fires
eaC" ^ entjrc plain and were visible from a great distance.1 *'

< .uraysh learned of the Muslim army heading

^(akkah al-Mukarramah, they sent Sayyiduna Abu

S fvan as a spy. When he saw the fires of the army from afar
and the huge army camped at Murr al-Zahran, he became
rrified and thought to himself that the Quraysh had no
chance against such an army. He sought protection in the
uncle of the Messenger of Allah Sayyiduna ‘Abbas Jj.,
and in a turn of fate, he accepted Islam after seeing the
excellent conduct and mercy of the Messenger oi Allah t^.143

On Friday 20 Ramadan, the Muslims set off from Murr al-

Zahran and the Messenger of Allah &<• instructed Sayyiduna
‘Abbas to take Sayyiduna Abu Sufyan to higher ground
that Sayyiduna Abu Sulyan could see the glory and majest

of the army of Allah 4*.

One after another, the battalions with their n ;

marched on towards Makkah al-Mukarramah. Sayyiduna

Abu Sufyan would ask Sayyiduna‘Abbas about each division

going past and Sayyiduna cAbbas would nil him _
were. Finally, the battalion ol the Messenger '

7 . , - Akn Sufvan said to

came by and seeing this, Sayyiduna ^ . nUi(e

Sayyiduna ‘Abbas: “The kingdom ol you. P

amazing!”
'he missary Elect

Sayyiduna Abbas replied: “This is not his kingdom thi

'0 41
is his Prophethood

The Messenger of Allah entered Makkah al

Mukarramah surrounded by his companions & and
announced to the people:

Whoevei drops then weapon will be promised protection and safety. Whoever
shuts the door of then home will be granted protection. Whoever enters the
h'a bah will be safe. Whoever enters the house of Abu Sujyan will be protected.

Seeing the grandeur and magnific ence of t he Messenger of

Allah £& and his army, the people of Makkah al-Mukarramah
had become terrified but upon hearing this announcement
of the Messenger of Allah they immediately dropped
their weapons and sought safety.14 '

After seeing off a small uprising, the Muslims victoriously

entered the Haram.146 The Messenger of Allah £& took his
stall' and made each oi the idols tall to the ground
laces by merely pointing at them. He recited the following
verse while he did so:

The truth has come andfalsehood has disappeared; indeedfalsehood was

certain to disappear. 147

With the idols in t ie Ka'bah destroyed, the Messenger ot

Allah c4 entered the Ka(bah, performed two units of sa
and then stepped out to see thousands ot people gathered

outside. Among me people were those who were hanging

 Section Six

their heads in shame and standing in fear, and also those who
had oppressed and tormented the Messenger o: Allah £4
when he ^4 lived in Makkah al-Mukarramah. They thought
to themselves that their execution was a formality or their
treatment of the Messenger of Allah d4 and the Muslims.
The Messenger of Allah asked them: “l)o you know what
is going to happen to you today?11

Knowing of his merciful character, they all replied: “You

are merciful and the son ol a merciful man.” The Messenger

of Allah $4 then pulled them out of the depths of darkness
anci into the light of Islam: “There is no reproach upon you
today. You have been forgiven and you are free.”148

The kuffar were amazed at his forgiveness and many

accepted Islam immediately. Gradually, all ol the people ol
Makkah al-Mukarramah accepted Islam.

The Messenger of Allah £4 stayed in Makkah al-

Mukarramah for 19 days and then appointed Sayyiduna
Attab ibn Usayd as governor of Makkah al-Mukarramah
before returning to al-Madinah al-Munawwaral . He o4 also
appointed Sayyiduna Mucadh ibn fabal to educate the
people.149

T he Battle of Hunayn - 8 Hijri

\lter ihe conquest of Makkah al-Mukai amah, the flag

oi Jslam was flying high on the iva(bah, and people began
1 he Emissary Elect &>

to come out of the darkness of kufr into the light of .

n ij'j

huge numbers. However, the tribes of Thaqxf and Hawazi

that lived nearby did not see Islam like the others had begun
to see it and also did not like to live under anyone else’s rule

They decided to make a pre-emptive attack on the

Muslims and began to prepare for battle.
hearing of the intention of the tribes o I Thaqlf and Hawazin
the Messenger of Allah gathered some 12,000 men to
prepare lor war. Seeing this enormous army some Muslims
said to themselves: “Who can defeat us today?"

As a result of this pride, the Muslim army was not

> * (

prepared; and when the two tribes began firing a huge

number of arrows at it, it caused many o! the Muslims to
flee the battlefield. However, some steadfast companions
continued to fight.

Seeing this, the Messenger of Allah called out to his

companions and they answered his call in unison. This
spurred the Muslims on and a probable defeat was turned
into a victory within moments, with every member oi the
kuffar army either being killed, captured or running away.1’0

Many ol those who ran away took re l uge in Awtas and

Ta if so it was necessary for the Muslim army to go tln-rc
ctorious. The Messenger of Allah ^ sent a
small battalion to Awtas under the command of Sayyiduna
Abu cAmir al-AsHari
 Section Sn

When the two armies laced each other in Awtas, both

to fire arrows at each other. )ne arrow struck
began
Sayyiduna Abu 'Amir on his leg, causing a serious injury. I [is

ivyidu
kafir who had injured his uncle and managed to kill him after
engaging in a fight. He ran back to his uncle to give him the
good news of killing the man who had injured him, however,
the arrow that had struck Sayyiduna Abu 'Amir was poisoned
and he passed away handing the leadership of the army to

Sayyiduna Abu Musa.

Sayyiduna Abu Musa then led the Muslims in battle and

managed to force the kuffdr to surrender. Many were taken as
prisoners and one of those happened to be the daughter ol
Sayyidatuna Hallmah al-Sa'diyyah $ and the I ister-sister ot
the Messenger of Allah Sayyidatuna Shlma’ When
the Messenger of Allah » saw her, he <* began to cry in
happiness and laid his blessed scarf down on the ground for
her to sit on. He then gave some gifts to her and set her

free. She later accepted Islam.111

Alter the victory in Awtas, the Muslims proceed* d to Ta it.

The kuffdr in Ta’if had locked themselves in the fortresses,
therefore the Muslims besieged the city. 1 he kuffdr the n be gait
to fire arrows, forcing the Muslims to retreat. The siege lasted
18 days but Ta’if could not be won. The siege was lifted and
some companions asked the Messenger ol Allah to pray
tot the destruction of the people ol T a it, however, he «k
The Emissary Elect »

prayed for their guidance. The result ol the prayer was that

within two years, the people of TW came to the Messenger

132
of Allah & and accepted Islam.

In this siege, 12 companions were martyred; seven from

, 'uraysh, four from the Anshr and one from the Banu

Layth. Many were also wounded.

Hunavn and Awtas are situated within the 60 miles

* /

between Makkah al-Mukarramah and Ta’if, and the battles

are named after their respective locations.

The Battle of Tabuk - 9 HurI

In Rajab 9 H, the Messenger of Allah & received news

that the people from the Battle of Mu’tah and the Emperor
of Rome were gathering troops in Tabuk for an attack upon

the Muslims.

It was very difficult for the Muslims to ligl t in this month,

the heat was intense and unbearable; it was the time for
harvesting crops (the main source of income for i! ic people);
the journey was long and they faced an enemy that, having
already debated great kingdoms and empires, controlled

about half of the world.153

The Messenger of Allah thought that if this armyvvas

not fought now, they would become a significantly higgtl
problem in the future. This is why the Messenger ol Allah
ordered his companions to prepare for war. Due to

no
 Section Six

the battle being in a time of hardships and drought, funds

and donations were required for the supplies and provisions
of the army. People gave generous y; women even gave their
jewellery to help out.154

After gathering supplies and provisions, the Messenger

of Allah £$> set off with 30,000 men towards Tabuk. When
the Muslim army reached Tabuk, the Christians became
terrified and did not leave their homes in sheer fear. They
could not gather the courage to face the Muslims. This gave
the Muslims a reputation throughout the world that may not
have been attained through battle.155

The leader of Aylah, Yuhanna ibn Rubah, presented

himself in front of the Messenger of Allah i# and agreed
to pay thzjizyah™ The people of Jarba’ and Adhruh also
*

agreed to pay the jizyah.

The Messenger of Allah then sent Sayyiduna Khalid

ibn Walid with a small army to Dumat al-Jandal to
bring its leader Ukaydir back with them. The Messenger
of Allah also told him that Ukaydir would be hunting
a large antelope. Sayyiduna Khalid and the suml! \l
army reached 1 )umat alJandal in a moonlit i ight and saw
Tkayciir; just as the Messenger ol Allah had described
him. They tl len brought I Jkaydir to the Messe iger ol Allah
Ukaydir agreed to give 2-5 *00 camels, 800 horses, 400
pieces ol armour and 400 spears lor his freedom -md ’
Emissary Fj set •*

Serins these events unfold, the peoplr vv^n ^

.# _ ^ ^^ pj
pnirl
hl„„;,er ;md sought protcr(ion with Rome Ix-gan f(|
a_ -sm. -■ _
* nrt|
I Ik. m_
_
■ . k.
**■ tha,
,his toiild become very expensive. I hey thrrrt
""mhr rl
then allegiance to the Muslim* and this was huw ...
spn-ad quickly outside Arabia. The Muslims were vin,,^
,n this battle without having to fight at all. The \(.wsPn?er<f
Allah i* staved in labuk for 20 days altogether Jhe biml.
provided many benefits to the Muslims. su« h as Arabia „<*,
being completely free, and many tribes from all a, r, ,ss \rahl
accepting Islam.

labuk is a place on the way from al-Madinah ak

Munawwarah to Sham and the battle is eponymous with
where it took place. Due to the battle occurring in a time of
several difficulties, it is also known as Ghazwat al-Usrah the
Battle of Harckhip). One companion named Sayyiduna Dhu
aJ-Bajadavn ‘Abd-AIlah passed away in this battle but this
was due to illness.1 )tt

I m Fahf.hu,i. Pilgrimage — 10 HurI

In Dhu al-Qa(dah, 10 H, the Messenger of Allah &

infoi int <1 the people that he intended to go to Mukkah al-
Mukai mail to perform Hajj. Soon, the news spread across
Aiabia and Muslims from all across the peninsula were tilled
ah excitement. When the Messenger of Allah set oil
loan al-Madinah al-Munaw warah, there were about 124,000
companions with him c4\li>y
 Section Si:

On Thursday 26 Dhu al-Qafdah, the Messenger of Allah

# prepared himself and went to al-Masjid ai-Nabawi to
lead iuhr saldh. He ^ then departed from al-MadTnah al-

Munawwarah with his wives. < >n 4 Dhu al-Hij ah, the
Messenger of Allah arrived in Makkah al-Mukarramah.
When the people heard o his arrival, the children came out
and ran to him in joy. 1 lie Messenger of Allah && then sat
some children on his camel.160

When he saw the Kabbah, he made the following

prayer:
q \iiah, You are Salam (Peace) and. from You is peace. 0 Allah, keep us
aim with peace. 0 Allah, increase the goodness, respect and dignity of this
house, and increase the honour of those who perform Hajj and Vmrah of it.

He # then kissed al-Hajr al-Aswad (the Black Stone),

performed tawaf of the Kacbah, prayed two units o saldh at
Maqam-Ibrahim and performed sa(T
and Mount Marwah.161

On Thursday 8 Dhu al-H i jah, the X lessenger ol Allah d4*

went to Mina and he && stayed in ‘Arafat on Friday. When
the sun set, he sat on his camel C^aswa’ and spoke to nis
companions. The sermon he && delivered is tl le most famous
speech in history:

0 people, listen carefully to what I say. It may be that I will not seeyou again
after this year.

0 people, juft as you regard this month, this day and this city as sacred, it is
tteussaryjoryou to regard the life and property of each other as sacred. Listen
 *

The Emissary Elect

carefully, all cutioms and traditions of the time of ignorance are crushed
beneath my feet.162

0 people, there is only one God, and you are the children of one father. M
Arab has superiority over a non-Arab and no white over black, except in
piety

0 people. women have rights over you too. Treat them well as they are your
companions and partners. Treat slaves well Feed them what you eat, give
them to wear whatyou wear andforgive their mTslakes.

0 people, those here today should pass this message on to those who are not
present. It may be that they will be mindful of my words more than you.

0 people, when Allah ^ asksyou about me, what willyou say?

The companions jSjt said:

“O Messenger of Allah ^ we will teklijy thatyou spread His message and

fulfilled the obligations of Prophethood. ”

The Messenger of Allah then pointed to the sky and

said: “O Allah, bear witness. O Allah, bear witness. () Allah,
bear witness.”164

The following verse was then revealed:

This day I have perfectedyour religion foryou and completed My favour upon you
and I have chosen Islam as religion foryou1 t,J

When the Messenger of Allah reciter this verse,

Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddlq began to cry' because he
understood that this was an indication that these were the
final days of the Messenger oi Allah dAc with his companions.
 Section Six

After the sermon, Sayyiduna Bilal ibn Rabah ^ gave the

Adhan and zuhr and casr salah were performed.

On that day, every individual in ‘Arafat was taking the

name of Allah 1 here was no one to take the name of
Lit or 1 lubal.1" After 22 years of perseverance, Arabia had
become free from polytheism and the name of Allah & was
heard everywhere.

Departure from this World - 11 HijrI

When the Messenger o Allah completed his duties

as a Prophet and Messenger of Allah and when the
religion of Allah & had been propagated, it was time for
him to leave his companions and depart from this
world. The Messenger of Allah had already indicated to
his companions about his passing away on a number of
occasions, for example, in the sermon during the Farewell

Pilgrimage.

Three months had not passed after the Hajj that the
Messenger of Allah » became ill. Gradually, his physical
condition deteriorated and when lie was unable to walk,
he dv gatl lered his wives and sougl their pc t i i u
at the 1 louse of Sayyidatuna ‘A'ishah All of his wives gave
their permission to him and with the help of Sayyiduna
(Ali & and Sayyiduna cAbbas j&, he » went into the home
of Sayyidatuna‘A’ishah

115
The Emissary Elect &

For as long as the Messenger of Allah had the strengt 1

he && went to al-Masjid al-NabawT and led saldh but when U<

was unable to, he # appointed Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-

Siddiq to lead it. In total, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq
led 17 prayers during the lifetime o! the Messenger of
Allah $fr.The illness would increase and decrease. The day
before passing away, the condition of the Messenger of Allah
improved and he was able to go to the masjid with
the help of Sayyiduna CA1T ^ and Sayyiduna c Abbas at the
time of zuhr, Sayy iduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Jt was leading
the saldh but upon hearing hie footsteps of the Messenger of
Allah t&j he moved back to allow (he Messenger oi Allah
$$ to lead the rest oi the saldh. However, the Messenger of
Allah stopped Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq A. and sat
beside him to perform saldh. After the saldh, the Messenger
of Allah d£ spoke to his companions giving them advice
and teaching them about some rulings.168
&

On the day he passed away, his condition seemingly

improved a lot. Seeing this, the companions jjjjt bee a
happy169

The house of Says idaturia(Aishah where the Messenger

oi Allah dy was staying, was adjacent to the Masjid and he
lifted die curtain to see his companions performing
fajr saldh, which made him d£ smile. The companions
noticing i ie Messenger ol Allah were overjoyed and
almost broke their saldh. However, the Messenger oi Allah
■
 Sect ion S

# drew the curtain and this was the last time they saw him

dfc.170

yter this, the Messenger of Allah began to alternate

between consciousness and unconsciousness. He wiped

water over his face, and covered and uncovered his face with

his scarf. Sayyidatuna 'A’ishah ^ sat beside him and held

his blessed head to her chest. He then said three times:

Wow I desire no one] but the Created Companion [ie Allah **7

These were his last words before he departed from this

world. 171
Hu* li. Jip iJJt 4b 6^ 5^' J* J^ <4**?'i
LiUpiau

Allah

c4> was 63 years old and the date was Monday 12 Rabf al-
173
Awwal. 1 11

When the companions heard that the Messenger of

Allah had left them, they were filled with ut imaginable

grief. Sayyiduna ‘Uthman al-Ghani and Sayyiduna CAE
& fell into a state of bewilderment and silence. Sayyiduna
'Abd-Allah ibn Anls passed away upon hearing the news.
Sayy iduna Umar al-Faruq jife. went into the streets with his
•swoid and said: “l will sever the head of those who say the
Messenger of Allah & has passed away.” People were m a
state of short and mnfusion.174
The Emissary Elect &

When Sawiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq A arrived frorn

0uba’ he went straight to the house of Sayy.datuna 'A’ishah
He then lifted the cloth and kissed the blessed face of the
Messenger of Allah » before coming out and address

Pe0Ple: , ,
, ,i . ,„hn worshipped the Messenger of Allah should know that he
^tlsPatd away and those who worship Allah * should know that Allah * „
' 1 ' nlmfi and will never die.

He then recited the following verse:

ill AJ
’<J>\ J* j? j' ^
tgJS\ 41)1 ^^
And Muhammad & is but a Messenger. There have been many other Messengers
before him. Willyou then, f he departs or is slain, turn back on your heels? And
he who will turn back on his heels shall not harm Allah & at all. And very soon
Allah & will recompense the thankful.17'

These words of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq ^ brought

the people back to their senses and it was as if' people had not
heard this verse before. Sayyiduna (1 oar al-ha
that when he heard Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq ieutt
this ayah, it was only then that he was able to begin to acc ept
the death of the Messenger of Allah and he pu his swoi d
away.l/f> Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq $t, was oe ■
as the Khaltfah177 of the Messenger of Allah

On Tuesday, the family of the Messenger of Allah

gave ghusl (bath) to him and shrouded him with three
pieces of white cotton cloth, as instructed by Sayyiduna Abu
Bakr al-Siddiq ^ in his capacity" as the Amir al-Mu mium the
 Section 5

L dcr of the Believers). lie £4? was then laid in the house
. , . „ -
of Sayyidatuna Aisnan v? auu groups ui
smrl Qmall crrnnrvi
uium &iuup* of people
nf nf»rvn1e

me inside, performed the janazah salah (funeral prayer)

ndividually without an Imam and then left.17”

Sayyiduna Abu 1'alhah al-Ansari & dug the blessed

resting place inside the house of Sayyidatuna' A’ishah & and
the Messenger of Allah was laid to rest on Wednesday

night.179
Blessed Wives

The blessed wives of the Messenger of Allah are

known as al-Azwaj al-Mutahhardt (the Chaste Wives) an. I ,i.
Ummahdt al-Muminin (the Mothers of the Believers).

The Messenger of Allah married into various Arab

tribes to further the reach oi Islam and to strengthen
relationships with them.

The Messenger of Allah had in total 11 wives; six of

them from the elite families of the Quraysh:

1. Savyidatuna Khadijah
2. Sayyidatuna cA’ishah 1
3. Sayyidatuna Hai'sah bint cUmar %
4. Sayyidatuna Umm-Hablbah hint Ai m Sufyan
5. Sayyidatuna Umrn-Salamah bint A1 m L mayyah ^
6. Sayyidatuna Sawdah bint Zamcah ^

Four of his wives were i om other iu)ble Aiab tribes.

7. Sayyidatuna Zaynab bint Jahsh ^
8. Sayyidatuna Maymumah bint Harith
9. Sayyidatuna Zaynab bin
1 h. Sayyidatuna Juwayriyyah bint Harith ^

And one wife was from the Banu Isra il.

11. Sayyidatuna Safiyyah bint Huyayy £§>•

The first marriage of the Messenger of Allah * was to

Sayyidatuna KhadTjah $ and he GV did not marry again
until after she passed away.180 Sayyidatuna KhadTjah % and
" n ■ ■ ■a m • m. ■wr ^

Sayyidatuna Zaynab bint Khuzaymah \$i passed away wVi i I ^

/*
he was alive.

A very significant number of religious rulings are learned

from the wives of the Messenger of Allah especially from
Sawidatuna ‘A’ishah who narrated many Ahadith.
/ /

Children

Sayyidatuna KhadTjah gave birth to all of the children

of the Messenger of Allah except for Sayyiduna Ibrahim
who his maid Sayyidatuna Mariyah al-Qibtiyyah & gave

birth to.181

Sayyidatuna KhadTjah gave birth to;

1. Sayyiduna Qasim ^
2. Sayyiduna cAbd-Allah ^
3. Sayyidatuna Zaynab ^
4. Sayyidatuna Ruqayyah ^
5. Sayyidatuna Umm-Kulthum %
6. Sayyidatuna Fatimah

Sayyidatuna Zaynab married Sayyiduna Abu al-As

Rabf and passe< 1 away in 8 H. S) le had a daughter i tamed
Sayyidatuna Umamah whom the Messenger of Allah ^
loved very much and would sit on his shoulders.182

Sayyidatuna Ruqayyah married Sayyiduna ‘Uthman

 Section Seve

al-Ghanl and passed away in 2 H. The Messenger of Allah

» then gave Sayyidatuna Umm-Kulthum & in marriage to
Sayyiduna ‘Uthman al-( ihanT for this reason Sayyiduna
TJthman al-Ghani ^ has been given the name Dhu al-Nurayn
(the One with Two Lights). Sayyidatuna Umm-Kulthum $
passed away in 9 H. ?tSli It '«?•*: f ycT i

Sayyidatuna Fatimah Q was the most beloved to the

Messenger of Allah and she married Sayyiduna CA1T ■&.
She passed away ess than six months after the Messenger of
Mlah £& passed away. She had two sons: Sayyiduna Hasan
^ and Sayyiduna Husayn j&, who are famous for their
sacrifices for Islam. The descendants of Sayyiduna Hasan
^ and Sayyiduna Husayn ^ are known as Sayyid today. The
\ essenger of Allah && loved them dearly and said that they
are the leaders of the youth of Jannah and that they are two
■9

flowers of Jannah.184

Uncles

I he Messenger oi Allah £& had 12 uncles:

# Sayyiduna Hamzah
® Sayyiduna < Abbas
® Harith
#

® Abu Talib
■

# Zubayr
® Abu Lahab
(ihaydaq
The Emissary
Elect m

$ Muqawwim
» Dirar
# Qutham
fAbd al-Ka bah

# Hijl
Only Sayyiduna Hamzah £i and Sayyiduna ‘Abbas &

accepted Islam.

Sayyiduna Hamzah & was incredibly strong and was

given the titles of Asad-Alldh (the Lion of Allah *) and Asad

al-Rasul (the lion of the Messenger »). I (e passed away in

3H in the Battle of Uhud.

Sayyiduna ‘Abbas j& is also one of the most famous

companions of the Messenger of Allah t&. The Messenger
of Allah t%> prayed for him and his descendants. He passed
away in 32 or 33 H and he was laid to rest in Jannat al-BaqT
in al-Madlnah al-Munawwarah.185

Aunts

The Messenger of Allah had six aunts:

® cAtikah
® Umaymah
# Umm-Haklm *

® Bar rah
® Sayyidatuna Safiyyah ^
® Arda
 Section Seve

Only Sayyidatuna Safiyyah '|t accepted Islam and she

js die mother of the famous companion Sayyiduna Zubayr
ibn al-Awwam Jt. Sin was very brave and killed a Jew who
tried to enter the fort in which the women and children were
sheltering in the Battle of Ahzab. She I'ought the kuffar in the

Battle of Uhud too. She passed away in 20 H at the age of

73 and was buried in Jannat al-Baqr.186

Mu’ADHDHINS

The Messenger of Allah had 'our mu'adhdhins (callers

to salati:
$ Sayyiduna Bilal ibn Rabah Jt (who gave the adhan in
al-Masjid al-Nabawi)
$ Sayyiduna 'Abd-Allah ibn Umm-Maktum Jt (who
was blind; al-Masjid al-Nabawi)
ig> Sayyiduna Sa'd ibn 'A’id Jt (Masjid-Quba )
® Sayyiduna Abu Mahdhurah Js. (al-Masjtd al-
Haram)187

Animals

The Messenger of Allah had seven horses.

® Sakab ® Lazaz
« Luhayf # MurtaJizal
$ Shaja’ ® Ward
Zarh
The Emissary Elect

Hr had three donkeys: ‘AfTra, sent by Muquqis; one sent

hv Fanvah al Judhami and one .given as a .gift by Sayyiduna
w7

Sa'd ibn TJbadah

The Messenger of Allah tM> also had five mules: Duldul,

sent by Muquqis; Fiddah, sent by Farwah al-Judhami; and
three others given to him by NajashT and the leaders of
Avlah and Dumat abjandal.
r

The horse Luhayf was still alive when the Messenger of

Allah passed away, and so was the mule Duldul which
lived until the Caliphate of Sayyiduna Amir Mufawiyah
more than 30 years after the Messenger of Allah passed
away.

The Messenger of Allah possessed two camels: cAdba,

which was extremely fast; and Qaswa’, the ride of the
Messenger of Allah in the blessed Hijrah and the camel on
which he delivered the sermon in the Farewell Hajj. He
bought Qaswa5 from Sayyiduna Abu Bakr al-Siddlq j&.188

Weapons

The Messenger of Allah # had nine swords:

# Ma’thur ® Rasub
# al-Adab ® al-Mikhdamal
® Dhu al-Fiqar » Qadib
# QaH
# al-Battar
® al- Khanalal
 Section Sevei

The Messenger of A Rah && inherited Ma thur from his

blr father, and he gave Dhu al-Fiqar to Sayyiduna cAli
■ He Battle of Ahzab.
Ain
He C& also had seven pieces of armour, six bows, one
• - r one shield, five spears, two helmets, three overcoats,
one large flag (as well as many smaller flags) and a tent.lfl9
 Section Eight

a Brief Description of the M essenger of Allah

Just as Allah & has perfected the internal qualities of the

Messenger ol Allah I e
1 has also given him the most
sublime physical countenance and beauty.

The entire body of the N messenger of Allah ^ was

filled with pure light and illumination, and he did not
possess a shadow. He was of a air complexion and no
flv would sit on his flawless body. He had the seal of
Prophethood which was the size of a pigeon’s egg between
his two shoulders. He S& was neither too tall nor short but
would appear the tallest among any group of men. His head
was large 190 and magnificent. His hair was not straight and
neither very curly. The blessed cheeks were white with a hint
of rosiness .191 His eyes were big, eyelashes long and irises deep
black 192 and his nose was gracefully long and glowing. His
forehead was broad and radiant and his mouth wide, filled

with teeth like pearls. He iSfr spoke in a manner charmingly

lovely and elegantly eloquent. His blessed saliva was a cure

for illnesses and wounds. His neck .1 K ink t ^

proportionate. His palms were broad 193 and his skin
softer than silk but still firm. The abdomen and chest were
level194 and the blessed feet wide with the hetls thin. He
would walk with dignity and purpose 195 as though he
coming down from higher groun* l. He would walk very
The Emissary Elect dflfr

s though the earth was foldii g u * in front of him &p}%

f ast as

Sublime Qualities and Uniqueness

The Messenger of Allah iSfr has so many excellent qualities

that one cannot fix their number. Allah & created the
Messenger of Allah tM> before anything else. J he Prophets,
Angels, the earth, the sky and everything in the universe were
created from his nur (light). Allah has given the Messenger
of Allah countless qualities, and no one can be equal to
him -4 in any characteristic. Allah has given the keys to
all of the treasures in this world and the hereafter to the
Messenger of Allah Allah & is the One who gives and the
Messenger of Allah distributes to everyone. Sayyiduna
Amir Mucawiyah ^ narrates that the Messenger of Allah

d4 said:
e . A

^15151 Isfo ajJI J v^d V- ^

Hefor whom Allah & ift/Zy goodness, He gives him understanding oj the religion.
And verily I am the Distributor and Allah gives.V)r

0^3

/’or indeedfrom your generosity is the beSt of this world and the next, andfomyour
knowledge is the knowledge of the Pen and Tablet 1 J8

s- -r" ■
- Z_iL/if j-'i
iMrd is the Giver, he £$> is the distributor, The suSlenunee is His, be '
providesm
 Section Eigm

When the Messenger of Allah was born, the idols in

the Ka'bah fell on their faces and a light shone in front of his
mother, Sayyidatuna Amtnah £§t, through which she saw the

buildings of Sham. I’he moon would move at the direction

f his finger when he was young. He && could see behind
himself just as well as he £& saw in front of himself His
heart remained awake, only his eyes slept. His sweat was

more frag ant than musk. He & did not have a physical

shadow. He will be the first to enter Jannah. He dv is the

first Prophet and was the last to come to this world. There
will be no new Prophet after him <&.m

Allah honours and values all of the Pn ■ bets <&■, but

the Messenger of Allah » is the greatest and most superior
over all of them. Allah & sent him to guide us, informed
him tSfr of the ghayb (unseen) and gave him & knowledge

about everything.201

This is only a very brief description of the Messenger ol

Allah # and one should not think that these are all ot his
splendid qualities. People have written many books yet
one can say all of his qualities have been documented.

The special characteristics of all ol the othei Piophets

can be found in the Messenger ol Allah He is the
first creation of Allah & and it is because of 1
universe exists.
The Emissary Elect d*

In short, the Messenger of Allah has been made

complete and perfect in every way, rather he <» defines
human perfection.
i fin jt-'j s*** $

For indeed the superiority of the Messenger of A Hah has, No limit that a
speaker can express with his mouth20'’

Miracles

A mujizah is that extraordinary occurrence at the hands

of a Prophet that goes against nature and is rationally
unexplainable.203 A mujizah is a testament to a Prophets
Prophethood. There are innumerable miracles of the
Messenger of Allah and all of them are magnificent:
HI

AjbT 3jJL5

(QJIj-yte lM bfr 1^1

If his miracles were proportionate to his grandeur, The mere utterance of his namt
would bring back to life the dusl that was once bones 204

(ince, a bedouin came to the Messenger of Allah $$ and

asked: uf low can I be certain that you are the Messenger of
Allah ?£&? 55

The Messenger of Allah £& replied: ‘"There is a bunch

o\ dates hanging over there, if call it and it comes, will \ou

accept me as the Messenger of' Allah

The bedouin agreed. The Messenger of Allah # then

called the dates and they immediately came to him tfc. He &
 Section Seven

ihcn told them to go back and they reattached themselves to

the tree. The Bedouin therefore accepted Islam.205

Sayyidnna Jabir & reports: “At Hudaybiyyah, we [the

companions were vei v thirsty. We went to the Messenger
0f Allah and he $t> was performing wudu’. We told the
Messenger of Allah $5> that we were extremely thirsty and
only had a small amount o water left. The Messenger of
\llah <£» then placed his hand in a container and water
began to flow from between his fingers like a spring The
people quenched tl eir thirst and performed wudu’.”

Sayyiduna Jabir further states: “1 here were 1,500 people

but there was enough water for 100,000 people.”-"6

Sayyiduna 'Umar al-Faruq narrates that the Messenger

of Allah dv was once sat with his companions when a
man who had killed a lizard and intended to eat it passed by.
The man asked why there were so many people gathered and
he was told that it was because of the Messenger of Allah
The man then said that if the lizard accepted the Messenger
of Allah as the Messenger of Allah #>, he would too. He
then placed the lizard on the floor. The Messenger of Allah

t^k turned to the lizard and said: “0 lizftrd.

Immediately, the lizard spoke and said: I ana present, O

Messenger of Allah

The Messenger of Allah asked the lizard. W

The Emissary Elect m>

The lizard replied: “I worship Allah **, who is the Lord

of the Universe.”

The Messenger of Allah 8b then asked: “Who am 7?”The

lizard answered: “You are the Messenger of Allah * and the
Final Prophet. Whoever believes in you will be saved and
those who reject you will go to Hell.

After seeing this unfold before himself, the man accepted

Islam.207 Ibn-Qani' narrates that during the Farewell
Pilgrimage, the Messenger of Allah 8b went into a house.
His face was more radiant than the full moon. He reports
that something strange and amazing happened when a
person from Yamamal i brought a baby wrapped in a cloth
to the Messenger of Allah 8b. The child had only been born
that very day but the Messenger of .Allah 8b asked it: "Tell
me, who am I?”

The baby replied: “You are the Messenger of .Allah

The Messenger of Allah 8b then said to the baby: ‘You have
told the truth, may Allah & bless you. ”

His Exalted Character and Disposition

The Mother of the Believers Sayyidatuna ‘A ishah ^vvas

once asked about the character of the Messenger of Allah
8b. She replied: “The character of the Messenger of Allah
8b was [the reflection of] the Qur’an.”209
 Section Eight

The Holy Qur’an says:

And undoubtedly your character is moft magnificent. 209

Those who saw the Messenger of Allah suddenly would

be awestruck but when they would come close and talk, they
Id ^ -n jove with him He $£> would be the first in
ting people, never waiting for them to greet him &
first2,0 He dfr always had a smile on his face and he would
never talk impolitely or unpleasantly. He <%■ never stretched

his legs when he t®> was with people and he would be the
last to let go when shaking hands. He ^ never became angry
except when someone went against the Shaif ah. He * was

always helpful. He would not get people to do things for

him C&; he would sew his own clothes, milk goats and he
•-= t . */■;* r *

# also did housework.

die Messenger of Allah », says: “1 served the Messenger of

Allah for ten years. ' swear by A Hah he d* would do
more for me than I did for him ». He » never told me off,
never even saying ‘ufF211 to ne, he die never asked me. y
did you not do this?’ or ‘Why did you do this.

The Messenger ol Allah can d 1

dv would treat everyone equally. He loved his comp
and he would visit the ill. H anyone piesente S
to him he m would accept it and bestow them with
The Emissary Elect &

something of equal or greater value. He m would console

those who were upset. His generosity was such that he <*
never said no to anyone. He would spend and give away
his possessions freely to people without even the slightest fear
of poverty. In fact, many accepted Islam after seeing this
generosity, such as Sayyiduna Safwan ibn Umayyah & who
said that such generosity is impossible for a person who is not

a Prophet.212

The M essenger of Allah once owed a debt to a Jew

and a date had been set for its repayment. However, the Jew
came early, demanding repayment of the debt immediately.
He became angry yet the Messenger of Allah remained
calm. The Jew remarked: " It seems as though such disregard
runs in your family”

This enraged Sayyiduna (Umar al-Faruq who said: *If

we were not in the presence of the Messenger of Allah I
would have killed you!”

The Messenger of Allah advised Sayyiduna Tmai al-

Faruq jjfc. that he should not have become angry at the man.
rather he should have told i dm to calm down. 1 he Messenger
of Allah then told Sayyiduna 'Umar al-Faruq 10 Pa)
off the debt to him and also to give twenty saQli 1X101 e 10
compensate for what he had said to him. When iln J
this, he immediately accepted Islam and said: “1 have it ad
the previous scriptures, and in them it is said that tht
Messenger of Allah will react to anger with gentleness.
 Section Eigh

had to see if the Messenger of Allah had this attribute and

1 found him to be just as it has been described.”

The Messenger of Allah would perform saldh a lot

and would stand in tahqjjud (night prayer) for so long that his
blessed feet would become swollen. People would ask him:
“Why do you exert so much el Fort?” He woi ild reply: “Would
I not like to be a grateful servant?”

Thi Rights of the Messenger of A i i u \ Over His Nation

The Messenger o Allah has many rights over the

Muslims, some of them are mentioned briefly below.

Belief

It is necessary for every Muslim to believe that there is

only one God, Allah and that the Messenger of Allah
&/ is His Prophet and Messenger. A person who believes in
Allah ste but denies that the Messenger of Allah <M> is His
Final Prophet and Messenger cannot be a Muslim.

Allah says in the 1 Toly Qu an

dU ^3 ^ ^ l css
And whosoever believes not in Allah and His Messenger, We have indeed
214
prepared for the infidels a blazing fire.

This ayah clearly shows that a person who believes in Allah

as well as the Messenger ol Allah is a Muslim, but a
The Emissary Elect «■

person who believes in Allah * yet does not believe in the

Messenger of Allah » is a kafir, whose ultimate destination

will be Hell.

Love

ItivS also necessary for every believer to love the Messenger

of Allah dfc more than evei vthing else. This obligation is
proven from many verses of the Qur’an and Ahadith.

Say [to them. O Beloved ]: “If your fathers, and your sons and your
brothers and your wives andyour clan and the wealth ofyour earning and the
trade of which you fear loss and the houses ofyour choice, are dearer to you
than Allah and His Messenger and the Struggling in His path, then wait till
AIM brings His Command. ’’AndAllah guides not the disobedient.2h

Sayyiduna ‘Umar al- ;aruq ^ once said to the Messenger

of Allah “You are the most beloved person to me in the
entire world except or myself.”

The Messenger of Allah £& replied: “You cannot lx a

complete believer unless you love me more than everything

in the world.”

A little while later, Sayyiduna d hnar al-l’aruq sal^ 10

the Messenger ol Allah “You are the most beloved to nu .
 Sect ion Eighi

even more than I love myself!”

Icssenger of Allah said to Sayyiduna ‘Umar al-

: “Now [you have completed your belief](> Umar.
1 ariiq
This is only one aspect of love. Another is to hate the things
the Messenger of Allah <M> hates and to hate the people the
Messenger of Allah t» hates even if it is one’s own brother,

sister, family or 1 ic 'd.

Obedience

It is a requirement for every Muslim to I e obedient to the

Messenger of Allah It is necessary to act upon his every
command and to stay away from those things that go against

his commands.
u*

And whatsoever the Messenger givesyou, take it, and whatsoever heforbids
you, abstain from that?16

P 2:11 fM <4^
Say, 0 Beloved: “[0 people,] ifyou love Allah then follow me, Allah will
love you andforgive your sins; and Allah is Forgiving,

Allah

to do or not to do something but we want to go again

command, it is necessary to do what the Mtsst ngt r of A1'
has instructed. True success is in what the Messenger of
Allah c& has said and this is always Inst for us even
rr in a 4- 4- iimf1
 Elect t»
The Emissary

Our Prophet who commands and. is no one.

in, “no”or “yes”2IH
More truthful than

Obeisance

A si hi of loving the Messenger of Allah t&> is to mention

him a lot and to say ^d*" (scilPAllcihu cdfiyhi wa sallam)
whenever his blessed name is mentioned, even if it is one
hundred times in one gathering. The Messenger of Allah #
should be remembered with deference and utmost respect.

To respect those things which have a connection to the

Messenger of Allah £& is also a sign of belief, love and
respect for him #. To raise one’s voice while in front of the
Messenger of Allah is to earn the displeasure of Allah *.
Saints and scholars have always honoured anything linked to

the Messenger of Allah his home , his masjid, his

and companions 0. and even those gatherings in which he

€4* is mentioned.

There are many maw lid and slrah gatherings and it is

impoi rant f< >r us to attend these and reap the rewan Is the cm,
which will indeed be the means of our salvation and success

in this world and the hereafter.

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