Guillaume--Life of Muhammad.pdf - Radical Truth
Guillaume--Life of Muhammad.pdf - Radical Truth
Guillaume--Life of Muhammad.pdf - Radical Truth
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145<br />
The Li'e 01 <strong>Muhammad</strong><br />
100 ':1' .<br />
Zayd not one <strong>of</strong>you follows the religion <strong>of</strong> Abraham but 1.' ~hen he sa~d:<br />
'0 G~d if I knew how you wished to be worshipped I wou s~or: ~p<br />
you; bu't I do not know.' Then he prostrated himself on the pa 0 IS<br />
h"';~~s told that his son, Said b. Z~yd, and 'Umar :-;~d~ha;r':~nw~~<br />
was his nephew, saId to the apostle, Ought we :0 as p<br />
Zayd b. 'Amr?' He replied, 'Yes, for ~e will be raIsed from the dead as the<br />
Ie representative <strong>of</strong> a whole people. . h'<br />
so Zayd b. 'Amr. b. Nufayl composed the following poem about leavmg IS<br />
people and the treatment he received from them:<br />
Am I to worship one lord or a thousand?<br />
If there are as many as you claim,<br />
I renounce al-L.t and al-'Uzz, both <strong>of</strong> them<br />
As any strong-minded person would.<br />
I will not worship aI_rUzza and her two d~u7hters,<br />
Nor will I visit the two images <strong>of</strong> the Banu Amr.<br />
I will not worship Hubal' though he was our lord<br />
In the days when I had little sense..<br />
I wondered (for in the night much.. strange<br />
Which in daylight is plain to the dlscermng),<br />
That God had annihilated many men<br />
Whose deeds were thoroughly evil<br />
And spared others through the piety <strong>of</strong> a people<br />
So that alittle child could grow to manhood.<br />
A man may languish for a time and then recover<br />
As the branch <strong>of</strong> a tree revives after ram.<br />
I serve my "Lord the compassionate .<br />
That the forgiving Lord may pardon my sm,<br />
So keep to the fear <strong>of</strong> God your Lord; .<br />
While you hold to that you will not pensh.<br />
You will see the pious living i~ garde~s,<br />
While for the infidels hell fire IS burnmg.<br />
Shamed in life, when they die<br />
Their breasts will contract in anguish.<br />
Zayd also said: (143)<br />
To God I give my praise and thanksgiving,<br />
A sure word that will not fail as long as tIme lasts, .<br />
. To the heavenly King-there is no God beyond HIm<br />
And no lord can draw near to Him.<br />
Beware, 0 men, <strong>of</strong> what follows death!<br />
You can hide nothing from God.<br />
1 This is the reading <strong>of</strong> al-Kalbi, but all MSS. have Ghanrn, a deity unknown.<br />
Yiq. iii. 665. 8.<br />
Cf. also<br />
The <strong>Life</strong> <strong>of</strong> l11uhammad 101<br />
Beware <strong>of</strong> putting another beside God,<br />
For the upright way has become clear.<br />
Mercy I implore, others trust in the jinn,<br />
But thou, my God, art our Lord and our hope.<br />
I am satisfied with thee, 0 God, as a Lord,<br />
And will not worship another God beside thee.<br />
Thou <strong>of</strong> thy goodness and mercy<br />
Didst send a messenger to Moses as a herald.<br />
Thou saidst to him, Go thou and Aaron,<br />
And summon Pharaoh the tyrant to turn to God<br />
And say to him, 'Did you spread out this (earth) without a support,<br />
Until it stood fast as it does?'<br />
Say to him 'Did you raise this (heaven) without support?<br />
What a fine builder then you were!'<br />
Say to him, 'Did you set the moon in the middle there<strong>of</strong><br />
As a light to guide when night covered it?'<br />
Say to him, 'Who sent forth the sun by day<br />
So that the earth it touched reflected its splendourl'<br />
Say to him, 'Who planted seeds in the dust<br />
That herbage might grow and wax great?<br />
And brought forth its seeds in the head <strong>of</strong> the plant l'<br />
Therein are signs for the understanding.<br />
Thou in thy kindness did deliver Jonah<br />
Who spent nights in the belly <strong>of</strong> the fish.<br />
Though I glorify thy name, I <strong>of</strong>ten repeat<br />
'0 Lord forgive my sins. 'I<br />
o Lord <strong>of</strong> creatures, bestow thy gifts and mercy upon me<br />
And bless my sons and property.<br />
Zayd b. 'Amr in reproaching his wife $afiya, d. al-I;la