Life-of-Muhammad

Life of Muhammad sa 73daring, and the hypocrites began to raise their headsagain. They began to think that the extirpation of Islamwas within their means and their competence. Only,they had to make a concerted effort. Accordingly, theJews put to use new methods of vexation. They wouldpublish foul abuse in verse, and in this way they wouldinsult the Prophet sa and his family. Once the Prophet sawas called to decide a dispute and he had to go to aJewish fortress. The Jews planned to drop a stone slabon him and thus put an end to his life. The Prophet sahad a forewarning of this from God. It was his wont toreceive such timely warnings. The Prophet sa left his seatwithout saying anything. The Jews later admitted theirfoul intrigue. Muslim women were insulted in thestreets. In one such incident a Muslim lost his life. Onanother occasion the Jews stoned a Muslim girl and shedied in great pain. This behaviour of the Jews strainedtheir relations with Muslims and forced them to fightagainst the Jews. But Muslims only turned them out ofMedina. One of the two Jewish tribes migrated to Syria.Of the other, some went to Syria and some settled inKhaibar, a well-fortified Jewish stronghold, to the northof Medina.In the interval of peace between Uhud and the nextbattle, the world witnessed an outstanding example ofthe influence of Islam on its followers. We refer to theprohibition of drink. In describing the condition of Arabsociety before Islam, we pointed out that the Arabs wereconfirmed drunkards. To drink five times a day was infashion in every Arab home. To lose oneself under theeffect of drink was a common practice and of this theArabs were not in the least ashamed. Rather theythought it was a virtue. When a guest arrived, it was theduty of the house-wife to send drinks round. To weansuch a people from this deadly habit was no easymatter. But in the fourth year after the Hijra theProphet sa received the command that drinking had beenforbidden. With the promulgation of this command,drinking disappeared from Muslim society. It is recorded