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CHAPTER 4
6. SEERAT AL – NABI
6.1 Childhood
Hadrat Abdullah married a lady of noble birth, Hadrat Amina bint Wahab, whom belonged to the Bani Zuhta of Yathrib. Soon after his marriage, Hadrat Abdullah died at the age of 25 years. A few months passed (and a couple of months after the As-haab-i-feel incident), the Great Prophet of Islam, God’s mercy for all humanity, Hadrat Muhammad Rasool-allah was born at Mecca on Monday 12 Rabi-al-Awwal/ 29 August 570 CE. [27]
In the very beginning, for some time, the Prophet’s mother nursed him, but later, Abu Lahab’s slave girl became his wet-nurse. Seven days after the Great Prophet’s birth, his grandfather Abdul-Muttalib, performed the ceremony, with great éclat, of giving his grandson the celebrated name, Muhammad. Thereafter, according to the prevalent Arab custom, the baby Prophet was entrusted to the care of Hadrat Halimah, who belonged to the noble family of Banu-Sa’d; Hadrat Halimah; she nursed the Prophet for two years. The incidence of Shaqq al – Sadar (the opening of his chest for the purification of the heart) was four years after his birth. The Prophet lived with Hadrat Halimah until 6 years old when he was returned to his mother in 575 CE.
On a journey from Yathrib to Mecca, Hadrat Amina bint Wahab passed this life in death at a village called Abwa[28] turning the Prophet’s patronage toward his grandfather, ‘Abdul-Mutallib, but the latter too died in 578 CE, when Hadrat Muhammad , was 8 years old. Thereafter, Abu-Talib became the Prophet’s guardian and supporter.
6.2 Adolescence
At 12 years of age, journeying to Syria with Abu-Talib, as the caravan passed through Basra, a notable Christian clergymen of Hubairah, having prophesized him to be the ‘Last Prophet’ warned Abu-Talib to keep his celebrated nephew away from the Jews. In the following years, two battles, between the Quraish and Bani bin Hawazin ensued namely, al – Harb and al-Fujjar. Then 15 years of age until that of 25, these journeys continued, Yemen and so forth, as the Prophet became regarded as Ameen and Sadiq (trustworthy and truthful) for his uncommon and laudable qualities of a very sterling character.
6.3 Adulthood
At the age of 25, he, on the advice of his uncle, undertook his second journey to Syria, accompanying a trading caravan of goods of a wealthy and noble widow of Mecca, Hadrat Khadija, her relative, Khuzaimah, and servant, Maisarah. While on the road, accosted by a Syrian Christian monk and sage Nastoor, whom having recognized him as Rasool-allah , warned him of enmity emulating from Syria resulting in subsequent harm to him, with advice to return home early; the Prophet complied.
Two months following, Hadrat Khadija emboldened by the favourable advice of her erudite cousin, Warqah ibn Naufal, proposed her marriage to the Prophet solemnized in 595 CE. He, at age of 25, whilst Hadrat Khadija, 40 years of age, throughout her lifetime, they remained enjoined in matrimony; and the Prophet of Islam did not marry another.[29] He had two sons and four daughters from her, no son lived to the age of adolescence notwithstanding his daughters, including the youngest, Hadrat Fatimah al-Zuhra (wed to Hadrat Ali bin Abu-Talib) well known in the annals of history.
6.4 Period leading up to Prophethood
After his marriage with Khadija, the Prophet played a prominent role in the civic activities of Mecca. When the Prophet turned age 30, he had founded, in Mecca, the famous society for helping the widows, the travelers and the poor. At that time, a certain person, ‘Uthman bin Huwairath, who had embraced Christianity, conspired with the Byzantines to surrender Mecca to the Romans, but the Prophet, successfully managed to nullify his nefarious intrigues. At the age of 35, in 605 CE, he very sagaciously and resourcefully, resolved the serious intertribal dispute for the placement of Hajar – I – Aswad (the sacred stone) in the Holy Ka’ba.
The Prophet used to spend the month of Ramadan every year in the cave of Hira (a few miles away) and Hadrat Ali too, at times, remained with him. In that very place, in the 40th year of age, the Prophet received his first Wahi, (in 609 CE) and the Archangel Gabriel conveyed to him the tidings of his becoming the Last Prophet of God. The day was Monday the 8th of Rabi al Awwal. The angel then taught Prophet the methods of ablution (Wu’du) and the portents of prayer (Salat).[30]
6.5 The Holy Qur’an
Indeed, the various modes of transcendental communication meant revelations to the Prophet arrived in different formats; Hadrat Jib’ reel came to him in likeness of man, sometimes providence came directly to him, and at other times the Prophet used to lie down in bed, wrapped in some cloth, receiving revelation, overawed – convulsed, perspiring and shivering.
The last Wahi was revealed to the Prophet (Ayahs of Surah Tauba or Barat) only nine days before his death. The Holy Qur’an was revealed two thirds over twelve years stay at Mecca, after his Prophethood, and the rest one-third revealed during 11 years stay at Medina. The total Surahs (chapters) of the Holy Qur’an number 114; the total Ayahs (verses) 6000, total words 77, 934 and the total letters are 3,230,015.
6.5.1 Methodology and Systemization
It is mistaken understanding that the systemization of the Holy Qur’an was one adopted by the followers of the Prophet after his demise, on the contrary, the Prophet had in his lifetime, guided by God, arranged for its organization. It was the general practice that, whenever any Ayah or Surah was revealed to him, the Prophet used to invite, immediately thereafter, one of his scribes to reduce it into writing, and, after having it done, used to instruct his followers to place the Surah before or after the particular Surah, indicated by him. The Prophet, himself, recited the Holy Qur’an, according to the same arrangement during the prayers and on other occasions. His Companions indeed followed, when they learnt it to memory, with the same discipline. Therefore it is an historical fact the revelation of the Qur’an was providentially completed, its arrangement, as it exists today, also completed, simultaneously.
The recitation of the Holy Qur’an, a vital constituent of the whole, Salat (prayer) was obligatory on the early Muslims, and therefore along with the revelation of it, the Muslims had it also to memorize. The security and integrity of the scriptures did not remain dependent on the parchment or date-palm leaves as they were then inscribed, but they were also immediately learnt by heart, by the early Companions, leaving little doubt for a derivative of satan to interfere.
God, the owner of its verses; the agent, whoever received this brightness in his heart, his mind, the Prophet , the recipient of propriety in its subsequent compilation.
6.5.2 Qur’an and the Caliphs
After the death of the Prophet , when Muslim Arabia faced a storm of apostasy, subdued only after terrible blood-shed, a great number of such companions of the Prophet were killed in battle who had memorized the Qur’an in its entirety. This state of affairs made Hadrat Umar anxious and worried for the safety of the Holy Qur’an, and obviously, it is precarious to rely for its preservation on the minds of men only and it seemed imperative it should be written down for its secure transmission to the posterity. He advised the Caliph Hadrat Abu-Bakr, accordingly who after some hesitation, agreed with Hadrat Umar, whereupon Hadrat Zaid bin Thabit Ansari (a scribe of the Prophet) was selected and deputed to perform this responsibility under the auspices that; (1) all scattered writings of the Qur’an should be collected together, which the Prophet had left after him; (2) then, all those companions of the Prophet be approached, who possessed, with them, the full or parts of the Holy Qur’an; for their collection[31] (3) the Huffaz (those who learnt Qur’an by heart) be consulted. This resulted in a seamless and most authentic version of the Qur’an, as it was revealed, and kept after the Prophet.
According to the aforementioned arrangement, therefore, a correct version was assiduously prepared and deposited in the safe custody, of Ummul-Mumineen, Hadrat Hafsah, and a general permission was granted to whosoever desired its consultation or duplication. Later on, with the advice of the Prophet’s companions the third caliph, Hadrat Uthman, decided for a great number of copies to be made from that most authentic and accredited version prepared under the instructions of Hadrat Abu-Bakr and Umar, as many other versions existed at different places in the surroundings. The Holy Quran extant today is thus the true copy of the prototype that was initially prepared by Hadrat Abu-Bakr, widely copied out and circulated by Hadrat Uthman.[32]
6.6 Early Muslims
The first conversion to Islam at the hands of the Prophet> , besides the famous Christian savant of Mecca, Warqah ibn Naufal, invited: Hadrat Khadija, Hadrat Abu Bakr, Hadrat Ali, Hadrat Bilal, Khalid bin Saeed, and Hadrat Uthman to Islam. The Prophet had also taken one cousin Aqeel and another, his slave, Zaid bin Harith, as his protégés and adopted sons. In the beginning, for a period of three years, the Prophet had propagated the message of Islam quietly. Thereafter, having climbed to the top of Mount Safa, the Prophet , proclaimed Islam publicly. The total Muslims then numbered only 40. When the Prophet made the announcement of Islam in Haram - i- Ka’ba (i.e. inside the precincts of the Holy Ka’ba), the Quraish fell over the small Muslim party, and, in the melee, Harith ibn Ubayee lost his life. The Quraish deputed ‘Utbah bin Rabi’ah to persuade the Prophet to refrain from propagating Islam, but he failed. Abu Lahab, one of the brothers of Hadrat Abdullah, became an avowed enemy of Islam and the Prophet, and the latter, with his companions and supporters, became their target of their incessant oppressions[33]. The early victims of their torture were Hadrat Khabab, Bilar, ‘Ammar, and among women, Hadrat Samiyyah, murdered by Abu-Jehl; she was the first Muslim-women, who died due to her belief in Islam.
6.7 Quraish Hegemony
When the maltreatment of the Muslims by the Quraish in Mecca became insufferable, the Prophet advised the former to migrate to Abyssinia, where, consequently in 5 Nabavi (614) CE, two caravans of the Muslim fugitives and refugees reached Habashah, consecutively, including Hadrat Ja’far bin Abi-Talib and Hadrat Uthman (with his wife Hadrat Ruqayyah). The Negus (king) of Abyssinia granted them refuge, refusing their expulsion; notwithstanding calls for extradition from a Quraish delegation.[34] The maximum number of Muslim muhajireen had once reached 300 in Habashah whom had returned to Medina by 7 Hijrah.
Once, when Abu-Jehl treated the Prophet with a singular insult, Hadrat Hamzah ibn Abdal-Mutallib (the youngest son) could not bear this affront, and, having embraced Hadrat Muhammad’s message, became a staunch supporter of the latter. Similarly, Hadrat Umar though went, at the instigation of Abu-Jehl, towards the Prophet with evil intentions, accepted him when he was welcomed by the Prophet with open arms, and became a pillar of strength and prestige for early Islam.[35]
The phase of non-cooperation of the Quraish, insofar to exclude the Muslims from the socio-economic sphere of daily activities, led them to trial for a period of three years; where they endured privation, seclusion, boycott, and destitution in Sheib-i-Abi-Talib, a mountain-valley near Mecca; like sheep, herded together, in 7 Nabavi. This siege of Muslims was raised in 10 Nabavi by 619 CE, when the efforts of Hisham bin ‘Umar and Zubair ibn ‘Umayyah prevailed against those of Abu Lahab, siding with the autocracy of the Quraish, while Abu Sufyan bin Harb initiated the anti-Semitic movement.
6.8 Ta’if
In the month of Rajab, 12 Nabavi, (621 CE), the incident of Meraj (ascension of the Prophet to the heavens) occurred.[36] In 11 Nabavi, both Hadrat Abu-Talib and Hadrat Khadija died, leaving the Prophet exposed and defenseless against the inimical onslaughts of the Quraish. The same year, the Prophet having become sorely disappointed with the Quraish, traveled to Ta’if (60 miles east from Mecca), in search of refuge and better treatment. In this journey, one of the faithful, Zaid bin Harith, accompanied him. That Ta’if was then populated by the strong tribe of Bani-Thaqeef; a more shoddy behaviour toward him resulted in an obligation to return to Mecca, exhausted and wounded both body and soul.
6.9 Yathribites
It was the practice of the Prophet that when he visited Arab tribal fairs, he addressed the people; particularly during the annual pilgrimage to the Holy Ka’ba (on the occasion of Hajj) the Prophet , used to visit every Arab tribe to offer the message of Islama [37]. During the Hajj Year of 11 Nabavi, the Prophet, made acquaintance with the Khazraj tribe of Yathrib, and six individuals declared themselves faithful to the truth of the Prophet’s message; essentially the proliferators for Islam in Yathrib. The next year, 12 persons came for Hajj from Medina, (ten from the Khazraj and two from the Aws). They accepted Islam at the hands of the Prophet on the top of a hillock, in the north of Mecca, known as Uqbah, recorded in the annals of Islam as the first Bait-i-Uqbah. The second occurred in 13 Nabavi when Hadrat Mu’sab had returned from Yathrib with 75 Medinite Muslims, to Mecca. Immediately after this arose the inauguration of the Hijrat (migration) of the Meccan Muslims to Yathrib (Medina).
6.10 Hijrah
Having deputed both Hadrat Ibn-i-Ummi-Kulthum and Mu’sab bin ‘Umair at Medina, the Prophet ensured the teaching and training of the new Muslims in 12 Nabavi, and, with their energetic efforts for proselytisation, both the Medinite tribes of Aus and the Khazraj embraced Islam.[38] When they found safe asylum in Medina, the Meccan Muslims, in small parties, initiated their migration. This movement annoyed the Quraish having now conspired to kill the Prophet , besieged his house with that intention. However, the Prophet, managed a successful retreat from Mecca, along with Hadrat Abu-Bakr Siddiq, on the night of Monday, Rabi-ul-Awwal, 13 Nabavi, (20 June, 622 CE), reaching Medina safely.[39]
6.10.1 Quba
After having left Mecca, the Prophet, had, along with Hadrat Abu-Bakr, taken shelter inside a cave of Mount Thaur for three days, where a slave of Hadrat Siddiq-i- Akbar played host. On their way to Medina, an enemy, Surqah bin Malik bin Ja’tham accosted them, with evil intentions, nevertheless returning to Mecca, leaving them unharmed.
The Prophet was escorted to Medina by a non-Muslim Arab guide, who, on payment, took them through an uncommon route through the desert. The Prophet entered Quba, in the outskirts of Medina, on 8 Rabi-ul-Awwal, 13 Nabavi. He remained there as a guest of the famous Quba Mosque (during the construction of which, the Prophet himself was a labourer), also mentioned in the Holy Qur’an.[40]
6.10.2 Medina
The Prophet, entered Medina (at the age of 52) on Friday, 16 Rabi-ul-Awwal, 13 Nabavi (2 July 622 CE)[41] and made his Friday congregational prayers in the masjid of Bani-Salim. The sermon (khutbah) delivered by the Prophet that day was the first Friday congregation of Islam. The Prophet entered Medina formally the following Monday, where he became the guest of Hadrat Abu-Ayub Ansari staying for seven months, whereupon, (when the Prophet’s Mosque and its surrounding rooms were constructed) he with his family shifted to the newly-constructed houses around the new Mosque. The total number of Muhajireen was over 100 when Yathrib was renamed to Medinatun-Nabi, in honour of the Prophet’s stay there, whose abbreviation has become simply Medina.
Adhaan (call to prayers) instituted at this time; a regular system of fraternal brotherhood among Muhajireen and Ansars was initiated by the Prophet, and a covenant was signed for friendship, toleration and amicable neighbourliness, with the Jews of Medina, which soon was overlooked thereafter. Further, a particular group, Ashaab-i-Suffah, from among the Muhajireen emerged, who spent their days and nights on platforms around the Masjid-i-Nabavi, were then acknowledged as the custodians and narrators of the Prophet’s ahadeeth (sayings and precepts).
6.11 Meccan / Medinite Conflict
As the Prophet emerged as an extremely popular character and recognized leader of the Medinites, one, Abdullah bin’ Ubayyi, who aspired this distinction for himself, arose in jealousy and enmity towards the Prophet, and entered into a conspiracy surreptitiously with the Quraish, resulting in conflicts and scuffles between the Meccan Quraish and the Medinite Muslims. At the former’s instigation, Kurz ibn Jabir attacked the grazing grounds of Medina and kidnapped many camels of the Prophet. The ensuing outrage prompted them to retaliate, whereupon they arranged for an interference with trade of the Quraish with Syria[42]; and with this imperative he forged strategic relations with neighbouring Arab tribes.[43]
6.11.1 Badr
In the month of Ramadan, of 2 Hijri/623 CE[44] occurred the famous battle of Badr (near the shore), between Mecca and Medina in which the glorious defeat of the Quraish at the hands of the then, early and outnumbered Muslim infantry accelerated the growth of the Islamic movement. The number of Quraish troops was then one thousand, led by Abu Jehl, while the Muslims numbered only 313. Many Quraish leaders were killed, namely, ‘Utbah, Abu-Jehl, and Shaibah, whilst others, such as Hadrat Abbas, after becoming captive, earned their liberty after embracing Islam.
6.11.2 Uhud
In 624, the Quraish of Mecca, under Abu Sufyan, in the month of Ramadan, attacked the Muslims to take revenge of their defeat of the last year in Badr, at Jebel- i-Uhud, 4 miles north of Medina. The Quraish numbered 3000 as opposed to the Muslims, whom initially 1000, dropped to 700; as some declined participation. A bloody battle, in which the Muslims fought, at first appeared to be in victory, but rather an ultimate defeat[45]; Hadrat Hamzah amongst the martyrs, killed treacherously, by the slave of Hindah, whose dead body wildly desecrated by her, the mother of Ameer Mu’awwiya and the wife of Abu Sufyan. The Prophet was himself wounded, a few teeth broken, falling into a trench under the shadow of lethal arrows.
6.11.3 Arab Revolt
After the misfortune of the Muslims at Uhud some Arab tribes revolted, with the result that the Prophet had to send exemplary armies against them four times; the most prominent of those rebel tribes were Bani-Umair and Bani Saleem. Moreover, the former Yathribite Jews too were emboldened in their anti-Muslim intrigues and indeed created trouble. Most of all, Abdullah ibn Ubayyi and his Munafiqeen (hypocrites) in Medina were the greatest source for this; they were punished for their violation of the treaty, a mild mannered form of exile from Medina to Syria.
Thereafter, a rebellion in 4 Hijri/625 CE, inspired another Jewish tribe of Banu-Qainqa’ towards a conspiracy to kill the Prophet, but their consorts became known, and as a result they were exiled to Khaibar. In 5 Hijri/626 CE, the Quraish of Mecca instigated the tribe of Bani-Mustalaq, in Medina, against the Medinites, but they were defeated whereupon the chief, Harith, embraced Islam. The same year, the necessity of war arose against the Christian Arabs of Dumatul-Jandal, in the south of Damascus, in which a defensive objective was achieved.
6.11.4 Battle of the Ditch
In 5 Hijri, after the expiration of truce period, the Quraish, under Abu-Sufyan, attacked Medina, and the Battle of the Ditch ensued,[46] fought by the Muslims, according to the strategy of Hadrat Salman Farsi. In this battle, both the Quraish and the former Yathribites combined against the Muslims, wherein they besieged them for one month, with occasional sporadic skirmishes, after which they returned to Mecca, their campaign unsuccessful. Besides the Jews of Khaibar, the Jewish tribe of Medina, Bani-Quraizah (bound in agreement) fought treacherously in Medina. Therefore, after the battle, the tribe was annihilated, according to the decree of the chief of Bani-Aus; Sa’d bin Ma’adh whom the Jews, themselves, had appointed their arbiter.[47]
6.12 Peace Agreement of Hudaibiyah
In Zi-Qadah, 6 Hijri (627 CE), the Prophet left Medina with a retinue of 800 Muslims[48] for the purpose of performing of ‘Umrah in Mecca. Halted at a place called Hudaibiyah, a fair distance short of Mecca, the Quraish refused to permit their entry. Thereupon, the Prophet dispatched Hadrat Uthman, to them, as his envoy, for conciliation; however, the Quraish, arrested and detained him insolently. On this affront and highhandedness; the Prophet called for an oath of allegiance and fidelity from all Muslims to avenge Hadrat Uthman’s incarceration, whereupon the Quraish, however, being frightened by the steadfastness of the Muslims, released him. This oath was taken under the shade of a tree that is known as Bai’at – i – Ridwan, in the annals of history, also mentioned in the Holy Qur’an. Consequently, an agreement was signed for non-belligerency for 10 years between the Quraish and the Muslims, including the stipulation that, the Muslims should return to Medina that year, and could return for Umrah the following year. The ‘Peace of Hudaibiyah’ is described in the Holy Qur’an as “a great victory for the Muslims.” Inscribed by Hadrat Ali; from the time of the signing of the agreement until the conquest of Mecca, during the intervening two years, numerous individuals accepted the call to Islam.[49]
6.13 The Road to Mecca
In 6 Hijri, 627 CE, the Prophet granted a charter (for freedom of worship, non-interference in religious affairs of the Christians, and guarantee of the security of their churches among others) to the monks and priests of the Christian monastery of Saint Catherine near Mount Sinai, incomparably the utmost action in religious tolerance never before witnessed in history.[50] The same year, after his return to Medina, the Prophet dispatched his emissaries, with letters of invitation to accept Islam; to the kings of the Eastern Roman Empire (Heraclius), Iran (Chosroes II), and Abyssinia (Negus), and the chiefs of the Copts of Egypt (Al-Muqauqus) of Yamamah, and of Syria. Out of them, the Negus of Abyssinia accepted this invitation whilst the Roman king and the chiefs of Egypt and Yamamah behaved with the Muslim envoys well, however; the Kings of Iran and Syria, with great pomp projected their displeasure by maltreating the Muslim messengers.[51]
In 7 Hijri / 628 CE occurred the Khyber War, after the conquest of which the power of the Jews in Arabia was broken completely. In this battle, Hadrat Ali displayed uncommon valour, when he had overrun the strong Jewish fort of Qamus, and had killed the noted Jewish warrior, Marhab, in combat. The same year, the Prophet, along with 2,000 Muslims, went to Mecca and according to the agreement, performed Hajj and Umrah. He returned to Medina after three days from Mecca, during which the Quraish had vacated the city, and had gone over the Abu-Qubais Mountain. In 8 Hijri / 629 CE, the Prophet dispatched a punitive force of 3,000 men, under Hadrat Zaid and Hadrat Khalid bin Waleed, to punish the Christian Ghassani chief of Syria, Sharjeel bin ‘Amru, who had Hadrat Shuja’ (the envoy of the Prophet) murdered. Sharjeel was a tributary chief of the Roman Emperor, Heraclius.[52]
Heraclius sent a strong expeditionary force, to aid Sharjeel, to Syria and on the south- east of the Dead Sea, near the village of Mutah, the famous battle of Mutah was fought, in which the Muslims displayed wonderful heroism and bravery, but the Muslim army was overwhelmed and outnumbered. Three Muslim commanders-in- chief – Hadrat Zaid, Hadrat Ja’far Tayyar, and Hadrat Abdullah bin Rawawah – lost their lives during the terrible combat, consecutively. Hadrat Khalid bin Waleed succeeded in saving the bulk of the Muslim army which returned to Medina.[53] The same year, the Quraish violated the Peace Agreement of Hudaibiyah by a massacre of persons of the tribe of Bani-Khuza’ah, inside the Haram (precincts) of the Holy Ka’ba, who had signed a bond of friendship with the Muslims. Consequently, the Prophet, on 10 Ramadan, 8 Hijri / 629 CE along with a formidable force of 10,000 men, marched on Mecca.
6.14 Conquest of Mecca
Abu Sufyan (the father of Ameer Mu’awwiya) was arrested, while spying in the Muslim camp, and when the Prophet pardoned him, even after his multitude of serious violations, he, overwhelmed by the Prophet’s common generousity, embraced Islam. Mecca was the same city – the Prophet’s own ancestral town – whose inhabitants had inflicted atrocities on him, but, as the Prophet had shown incredible forbearance during the days of his trials and tribulations there, he exhibited much more restraint and compassion at the moment of his triumph, no example of which can be cited anywhere in history. As a revenge, not a house was dismantled, no property confiscated, no one killed, and the modesty of no woman violated. There was a slight skirmish, owing to the opposition of ‘Akramah and Safwan, and a few Muslims lost their lives. Only four criminals were punished, while a general amnesty was proclaimed. That day, all the idols in Mecca were shattered and discarded.
After the conquest of Mecca, the Prophet delivered a grand Khutbah (sermon), which was addressed to all humanity. The Prophet climbed atop Mount Safa, sitting on its top, where rows upon rows of individuals came to him, thereupon embracing Islam. That day, even the worst enemies of Islam surrendered and accepted the inevitable. Hadrat Umar Furooq had acted to the Deputy to the Prophet that day. The most notable enemies, who embraced Islam that day, were: Abu- Sufyan, Ameer Mu’awwiya, Abu-Qahafah (father of Abu-Bakr), Akramah bin Abu- Jehl. Thereafter, the Prophet appointed ‘Uttab bin Usaid as the governor of Mecca, and returned to Medina. After the conquest, the Prophet entered his native city, astride his favourite she-camel, Al-Qiswah, while on his right side, Hadrat Abu-Bakr, and the on the left was Usaid; Usamah walking behind.
6.15 New Meccan Era
The same year (8 Hijri/629 CE), the Muslims defeated the tribes of Bani- Thaqeef and Bani-Hawazin in Ghazwah-i-Hunain. Hunain was situated nine miles in the north-east of Mecca; both the tribes embraced Islam thereafter. In 9 Hijri, the Prophet traveled towards Syria to oppose a Roman attack, with a large army, but returned from Tabuk, as the rumour of the Roman attacked proved to be false. Thereafter, the fort of Ta’if was conquered. The same year, after his return from Tabuk, the Prophet sent a large number of the Muslims from Medina to Mecca, under the leadership of Hadrat Abu-Bakr, for the performance of Hajj- the first Islamic Hajj of the Muslims. Hadrat ‘Ali was the spokesman of the caravan. According to the pronouncement, made by Hadrat Ali, on behalf of the Prophet in that Hajj, no non-Muslim has since been allowed, until recently, to enter the Holy Ka’ba. The Tribe of Tay had not accepted Islam due to their enmity towards the Muslims. Since the created troubles, the Prophet sent an army under Hadrat Ali to subdue them. ‘Adi bin Hatim Tay fled to Syria, and Hadrat Ali returned victorious with many captives (including the daughter of Hatim Tay); all of them accepted Islam. Up to that time, nearly all the Arab tribes had accepted the Prophet’s message and thereafter it became prominent amongst the tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. In 9 Hijri/630 CE, the Prophet dispatched his appointees to almost all in order to teach Islamic precepts. Letters of invitation were sent to various non-Muslim rulers, neighbouring Arabia. The tribe of Najran (in Yemen) accepted Islam about that time.
6.16 Prophet’s Farewell
When all of Arabia converted, the Prophet desired to proclaim the basic tenets of Islam globally. On the occasion of Hajjatul-Wida, for the performance of which the Prophet started from Medina on Saturday 25 Zi-Qadah 10 Hijri / 7 March 631 CE and arrived in Mecca in the morning of Saturday, 8 Zul-Hijjah, 10 Hijri / 7 March 631 CE; the Prophet was accompanied by approximately 150,000 Muslims. In this Hajj, the Prophet delivered two memorable, thought provoking sermons, first at ‘Arafat and second at Mina, after which God, through Wahi, transmitted the following message:
Al-Yauma Akmalto Lakum Deenakum wa Atmamto ‘Alaikum Ne’mati wa Radeeto Lakumul-Islama Deena.
(Today, for you, We completed the faith, and finalized Our blessing on you, and chose for you the faith of Islam.)
The Prophet bade farewell to all the Muslims; hence this Hajj was regarded Hajjatul-Wida. On 16 Zul-Hijjah, the Prophet started to return to Medina from Mecca.[54] On his return, he prepared an army, under Hadrat Usamah (whose father, Hadrat Zaid, was martyred in the battle of Mutah); to proceed to Syria to avenge for the murder of the Prophet’s messenger by Banu-Ghassan[55] , but it could not leave Medina, due to the Prophet’s sudden illness.
Through no difficulty, three months elapsed after the return of the Prophet from Mecca, that his illness became fatal. The prophet visited the famous, Janatul Baqqi cemetery on the night of Monday 19, Safar, 11 Hijri / 632 CE; on his return he suffered from fever and headache. When his condition worsened he moved to the house of Hadrat ‘Aa’ishah, adjacent to the Prophet’s mosque whilst Hadrat Abu Bakr Siddiq, at this time, led the congregation in prayer, per the latter’s instruction. After his last sermon, and his last morning prayers in the Mosque, the Prophet became bed-ridden. At last, in the afternoon, on Monday 12 Rabbi-ul-Awwal 11 Hijri (8 June 632), at the age of 63, the Great Prophet of Islam, Hadrat Rasool-Allah, sallalahu alayhi wa salam – the last in the series of the Prophets of Truth – the Messengers of God – breathed his last[56], whilst in the lap of his wife, Hadrat ‘Aa’ishah.
His last wishes to his followers were:
1. Do not make my tomb an object of worship.
2. Never forsake the prayers
3. Exercise compassion on the slaves[57]
4. Do not allow any non-Muslim to reside in Arabia.
His body was washed by Hadrat Ali, Hadrat Abbas, Hadrat Fadal, and Hadrat Usamah bin Zaid. He was buried on Tuesday inside the hujrah of Hadrat Aish’ah, at the same place where he had died.
Before the Great Prophet of Islam had died, his coat-of-mail was pawned, and the clothes in which he breathed his last were full of patches, stitched one upon another. He frequently starved, and had not eaten regularly for days. It happened, when the entire Arabian Peninsula, from Syria to Aden, was under the sway of Islam, and he frequently received so much wealth from the Islamic conquests that, the courtyard of the Prophet’s mosque became full, invariably, he distributed all of it among the poor and the needy, and never saved anything for himself or for his family. Even in 9 Hijri, when from Yemen to Syria, his authority went unchallenged; his uncoveted properties were merely a coarse mattress for sleep and a leather-bag for water. The Prophet of Islam was an incomparable embodiment of self-denial, austerity, generosity, selflessness, hospitality, forbearance and forgiveness.[58]
‘Allamah Shibli Nu’mani says, in his Seerat Al-Nabi, that:
“It is strange coincidences that, since all the earlier founders of the religions in this world were bereft of the qualities, which could survive them, their deeds were also recorded incompletely and defectively. Jesus lived a short life of 33 years only, and his account of deeds is too short, covering only three years. Iranian religious reformers are known through Shahnamah (of Firdausi) only. The lives of the Indian sages are mere legends and fairy tales. Whatever we know today, as regards Prophet Moses, is recorded in Taurah, which was written three centuries after that Prophet. It seems, therefore, as if all these lapses were Providential Pointers towards this fact that, their deeds and teachings were not eternal; so, whatever had been recorded about them and their deeds was sufficient, and more was not needed. No challenge, however, can be offered to this pride of the Muslims that, they have preserved and recorded every moment of their great Prophet’s life most carefully, authentically and comprehensively; evidences of over 13,000 persons had been available for this gigantic and voluminous record of the Prophet’s life, at a time, when it was extremely difficult to collect and collate such a material".[59]
The total period of the Prophethood of Hadrat Muhammad Rasool-allah was approximately 23 years (12 years in Mecca and 11 years in Medina). He had three sons; Hadrat Qasim, Hadrat Abdullah, and Hadrat Ibrahim, all of them having died in infancy; and four daughters; Hadrat Zainab, Hadrat Ruqayyah, Hadrat Umm-i- Kulthum and Hadrat Fatimah; all the children were from Hadrat Khadija (except Hadrat Ibrahim). The Prophet had 11 wives and one slave-girl (Hadrat Mariyah Qibtiyah), from whom the Prophet had his last son (Hadrat Ibrahim) who died during childhood. The wives were: 1) Hadrat Khadija bint Walaidad; 2) Hadrat Saudah bint Zam’ah (d. 22 Hijri, 642 CE); 3) Hadrat Aish’ah bint Hadrat Abu Bakr Siddiq (d. 58 H, 677 CE) 4) Hadrat Hafsah bint Hadrat Umar Farooq; (d. 45 H/665 CE) 5) Hadrat Zainab bint Khuzaimah (died during the life of the Prophet ; 6) Hadrat Umm-i- Salmah bint Abu-Umayyah (d. 63 H / 682 CE); 7) Hadrat Zainab bint Jahash (d. 20 H, 640 CE); 8) Hadrat Jawairiyah bint Harith (d. 51 H, 671 CE); 9) Hadrat Umm-i- Habibah bint Abu Sufyan (d. 44 H, 664 CE); 10) Hadrat Maimunah bint Harith (d. 51 H, 671 CE); 11) Hadrat Safiyah bint Hayyi (d. 50 H, 670 CE).
I. Khilafat – e- Rashidah:
From 11 Hijri / 632 CE to 40 H / 660 CE: 29 Years – Capital first at Medina, then at Kufah – with four Caliphs:
The First Caliph, Hadrat Abu Bakr Siddiq, Khalifat-ur-Rasool-allah, was from
11 Hijri / 632 CE to 13 Hijri, 2 ½ years at Medina. The Second Caliph, Ameer ul- Momineen, Hadrat Syedana Umar Farooq Azam, led from 13 Hijri 634 CE to 24 H, 644 CE about 10 ½ years at Medina. The Third Caliph, Ameer ul-Momineen Hadrat Syedana Uthman Ghani was from 24 Hijri, 644 CE to 35 Hijri, 655 CE; approximately 12 years. The Fourth Caliph, Ameer ul Momineen Syedana Hadrat Ali from 35 H, 655 CE to 40 H, 660 CE: reigned for 4 ½ years – first at Medina, followed by Kufah.
Some prominent Sahabah (companions) of the Prophet, sallalahu alayhi wa salam: Ameer Mu’awwiya bin Abu-Sufyan, Hadrat Sa’d bin Abi-Waqqas; Hadrat Said bin Zaid bin Nafeel; Hadrat Abdullah bin Ma'sud; Hadrat Abdur- Rahman bin Auf; Hadrat Zubair ibn Al-Awwam; Hadrat Talhah bin Ubaidullah; Hadrat Abu-Dhar Ghiffari; and Ammar bin Yasir Yamani.
II. Ahl-i-Bait-e-Rasool
1. Hadrat Ali (d. 40 H / 660 CE). 2. Imam Hasan (d. 50 H. / 670 CE). 3. Imam Husain (martyred 61 H / 680 CE). 4. Imam Zain-ul-Abideen (d. 94 H. / 712 CE). 5. Imam Muhammad Baqir (d. 114 H. / 732 CE). 6. Imam Ja’far Sadiq (d. 148 H/ 765 CE). 7. Imam Musa Kazim (d. 183 H / 799 CE). 8. Imam Ali Musa Rida (d. 203 H. / 818 CE). 9. Imam Taqi al-Jawwad (d. 220 H. / 835 CE.) 10. Imam Ali Naqi al- Askari (d. 252 H / 866 CE.) 11. Imam Hasan Askari (d. 260 H/ 873 CE); and 12. Imam Mahdi ( d. 265 H / 878 CE).
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