Guillaume--Life of Muhammad.pdf - Radical Truth

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The Life of Muhammad
Of the B. Sa'ida b. Ka'b: Sa'd b. 'Ubada a leader. AI-Mundhir b. 'Amr,
a leader, present at Badr and U1)ud and killed at Bi'r Ma'iina commanding
for the apostle. It was said of him 'He hastened to death' (259), Total 2.
The total number of those present at the second'Aqaba from the Aus
and Khazraj was seventy-three men and two women who they allege
pledged their obedience also. The apostle used not to strike hal\ds with
women; he merely stated the conditions, and if they accepted them he
would say, 'Go, I have made a covenant with you.'
(Of these two women) Nusayba was of B. Mazin b. ai-Najjar. She was
d. of Ka'b b. 'Amr b. 'Auf b. Mabdhiil b. 'Amr b. Ghanm b. Milzin,
mother of 'Umara. She and her sister went to war with the apostle. Her
husband was Zayd b. 'kim b. Ka'b, and her two sons were I;Iabib and
'Abdullah. Musaylima the liar, the I;Ianifi chief of the Yamiima, got hold
of I;Iabib and began to say to him, 'Do you testify that Muhammad is the
apostle of God?' And when he said that he did, he went on, 'And do you
313 testify that I am the apostle of God?' he answered, 'I do not hear.' So he
began to cut him to pieces member by member until he died. He tried
putting the same questions to him again and again, but he could get no
different answers. Nusayba went to al-Yamiima with the Muslims and
took part in the war in person until God slew Musaylima, when she
returned having suffered twelve wounds from spear or sword. It was
Muhammad b. Ya1)ya b. I;Iabban who told me this story from 'Abdullah
b. 'Abdu'I-Ra1)miin b. Abii f;Ja'~a'a.
The other woman was of B. Salama, Umm Mani', named Asmil' d.
'Amr b. 'Adiy b. Nabi b. 'Amr b. Sawiid b. Ghanm b. Ka'b b. Salama.
THE APOSTLE RECEIVES THE ORDER TO FIGHT
The apostle had not been given permission to fight or allowed to shed
blood before the second 'Aqaba. He had simply been ordered to call men
to God and to endure insult and forgive the ignorant. The Quraysh had
persecuted his followe!,s, seducing some from their religion, .and exilin,g
others from their country. They had to choose whether to give up the"
religion, be maltreated at home, or to flee the country, some to Abyssinia,
others to Medina.
When Quraysh became insolent towards God and rejected His gracious
purpose, accused His prophet of lying, and ill treated and exiled those who
served Him and proclaimed His unity, believed in His prophet, and held
fast to His religion, He gave permission to His apostle to fight and to
protect himself against those who wronged them and treated them badly.
The first verse which was sent down on this subject from what I have
heard from 'Urwa b. al-Zubayr and other learned persons was: 'Permis­
314 sion is given to those who fight because they have beenwronged. God is
well able to help thcm,~those who have been driven out of their houses
without right only ,because they said God is our Lord. Had not God used,
The Life of Muhammad 21 3
some men to keep back others, cloisters and churches and oratories and
mosques wherein the name of God is constantly mentioned would have
bee~ destroyed. Assuredly God will help those who help Him. God is
AlmIghty. Those who if we make them strong in the land wilf establish
prayer, pay the poor-tax, enjoin kindness, and forbid iniquity. To God
belongs the end of matters.' I The meaning is: 'I have allowed them to
fig~t only because they have been unjustly treated while their sole offence
agamst men ~s been that they worship God. When they are in the ascendant.
they w.'ll e.stabhsh prayer, pay the poor-tax, enjoin kindness, and
forbid InIqUIty, I.e. the prophet and his companions all of them.' Then
~od sent down to him: 'Fight them so that there be no more seduction'2
I.e. until no believer is seduced from his religion. 'And the religion'is i::;­
God's', i.e. Until God alone is worshipped.
When God had given permission to fight and this clan of the Ansilr
had pledged their support to him in Islam and to help him and his followe~s,
~d the MuslIms who had taken refuge with them, the apostle commanded
hi.s con:p~lOns, the emigrants of his people and those Muslims who were
WIth hIm m Mecca, to emigrate to Medina and to link up with their
brethren the An~ilr. 'God will make for you brethren and houses in which
you may be s.a~e.' So they went out in companies, and the apostle stayed
In Mecca waltmg for his Lord's permission to leave Mecca and migrate
to Medina.
THOSE WHO MIGRATED TO MEDINA
The first of the Quraysh to migrate to Medina from among the apostle's
compamons was one of B. Makhziim, Abii Salama b. 'Abdu'l-Asad b.
Hilal b. 'Abdullah b. 'Umar b. Makhziim whose forename was 'AbdulIah
He went to .Medina a year before the pledge at al-'Aqaba, having come t;
the apostle m Mecca from Abyssinia. He migrated because the Quraysh
ill-treated him and he had heard that some of the An~ar had accepted
Islam.
. My father Is~aq b. Yasar on the authority of Salama who had it from
hiS grandmother Umm Salama the prophet's wife told me that she said:
When Abu Salama had decided to set out for Medina he saddled his camel
3
for me and mounted me on it together with my son Salama who was in
1 5
my arms. Then he set out leading the camel. When the men of B.
al:M~ghira b. 'Abdullah b. 'Umar b. Makhziim saw him they got up and
saId: So far as you are concerned you can do what you like' but what
about your wife? Do you suppose that we shall let you take her away?'
So they snatched the camel's rope from his hand and took me from him.
~bii Salama's family, the B. Abdu'l-Asad, were angry at this and said:
'Y e Will ~ot leave our son with her seeing you have torn her from our
trIbesman. So they dragged at my little boy Salama between them until
I Sura 22. 40-42. 2 Sura 2. 198.