Guillaume--Life of Muhammad.pdf - Radical Truth

502 The Life of Muhammad
Then they sent to him al-l:Iulays b. 'Alqama or Ibn Zabbiin, who was at
that time chief of the black troops, being one of B. al-l:Iarith b. 'Abdu
Manat b. Kinana. \Vhen he saw him the apostle said, 'This is one of the
devout people, so send the sacrificial animals to meet him sO that he can
see them! When he saw them going past him from the side of the wadi with
their festive collars round their necks and how they had eaten their hair l
because they had been so long kept back from the place of sacrifice, he
went back to Quraysh and did not come to the apostle, so greatly was he
impressed by what he had seen. When he told them that, they said, 'Sit
down ! You are only a Bedouin, utterly ignorant.'
'Abdullah b. Abu Bakr told me that this enraged al-l:Iulays, who said:
'You men of Quraysh, it was not for this that we made an alliance and
agreement with you. Is a man who comes to do honour to God's house to
be excluded from it? By him who holds my life in his hand, either you let
Muhammad do what he has come to do or I shall take away the black troops
to the last man.' They said, 'Be quiet, I:Iulays! until we obtain for ourselves
acceptable terms.'
In his narrative al-Zuhri said: Then they sent 'Vrwa b. Mas'ud al­
Thaqafi to the apostle and he said: 'You men of Quraysh, I have seen the
744 harshness and rude words with which you have received those you sent to
Muhammad when they returned to you. You know that you are the father
and I am the son-for 'Vrwa was the son of Subay'a d. 'Abdu Shams-I
heard of what befell you and I collected those of my people who obeyed
me; then I came to you to help you.' They agreed and said that they
did not suspect him. So he came to the apostle and sat before him and said:
'Muhammad, have you collected a mixed people together and then brought
them to your own people to destroy them? Quraysh have come out with
their milch-camels 2 clad in leopard skins swearing that you shall never
enter Mecca by force. By God I think I see you deserted by these people
(here) tomorrow.' Now Abu Bakr was sitting behind the apostle and he
said, 'Suck al-Lat's nipples! Should we desert him?' He asked who had
spoken, and when he heard it was Ibn Abu Qul,lafa he said, 'By Allah, did
I not owe you a favour 1 would pay you back for that, but now we are
quits.' Then he began to take hold of the apostle's beard as he talked to
him. AI-Mughira b. Shu'ba was standing by the apostle's head clad in
mail and he began to hit his hand as he held the apostle's beard saying,
'Take your hand away from the apostle's face before you lose it.' 'Vrwa
said, 'Confound you, how rough and rude you are!' The apostle smiled
and when 'Vrwa asked who the man was he told him that it was his
brother's son, al-l\1ughira b. Shu'ba and he said, '0 wretch, it was only
yesterday that I washed your dirty parts!' (750).
The apostle told him what he had told the others, namely that he had
not come out for war. He got up from the apostle's presence having seen
I It is just possible that aubJr is the pI. of wibJr, a bitter salty herb with thorns (btimi(ja).
In that case it would support the rendering of I;Iamt;i on p. 741. :z v.s.
The Life of Muhammad 503
how his companions treated him. \Vhenever he performed his ablutions
t~ey ran to get the \vater he had used; if he spat they ran to it; if a hair of 745
hIs head fell they ran to pick it up. So he returned to Quraysh and said
'I have been to Chosroes in his kingdom, and Caesar in his kingdom and
t~e Negus in his kingdom, but never have 1 seen a king among a people
lIke Muhammad among his companions. I have seen a people who will
never ab~n.do~ him for any reason, so form your own opinion.'
A tradltlOnIst told me that the apostle called Khirash b. Umayya al­
Khuza'i and sent him to Quraysh in l\1ecca, mounting him on one of his
camels called al-Tha'iab to tell their chiefs from him what he had come
for. They hamstrung the apostle's camel and wanted to kill the man but
the black troops protected him and let him go his way so that he ~ame
back to the apostle.
One whom I do not suspect from 'Ikrima client of Ibn 'Abbas from the
latter told me that Quraysh had sent forty or fifty men with "rders to
surround the apostle's camp and get hold of one of his companions for
them, but they were caught and brought to the apostle, who forgave them
and let them go their way. They had attacked the camp with stones and
arrows. Then he called 'Umar to send him to l\lecca with the same message,
but 'Vmar told him that he feared for his life with Quraysh, because
there were none of B. 'Adiy b. Ka'b in Mecca to protect him, and Quraysh
knew of his enmity and his rough treatment of them. He recommended
that a man more prized there than himself should be sent, namely 'Uthman.
The apostle summoned 'Vthman and sent him to AbU Sufyan and the
chiefs of Quraysh to tell them that he had not come for war but merely to
VISIt the house and to venerate its sanctity.
As 'Uthman entered or was about to enter Mecca Aban b. Sa'id b. 31-
'~~ met ~im and carried him in front of him. Then he gave him his protectIOn
untIl he could convey the apostle's message to them. Having heard
what 'Vthman had to say, they said: 'If you want to go round the temple, 746
go round it.' He said that he could nat do so until Muhammad did so and
Quraysh kept him a prisoner with them. The apostle and the Mu~lims
were informed that 'Vthman had been killed.
THE WILLING HOMAGE
'Abdullah b. Abu Bakr told me that when the apostle heard that 'Vthmiin
had been killed he said that they would not leave until they fought the
enemy,. an~ he summoned the men to give their undertaking. The pledge
of al-RI