THE FIRST STAGE
STRIFE IN THE WAY OF THE CALL
THREE YEARS OF SECRETE CALL:
It is well-known that Makkah was the centre for the Arabs, and housed the custodians of Al-Ka‘bah.
Protection and guardianship of the idols and stone graven images that received veneration on the part
of all the Arabs lay in the hands of the Makkans. Hence the difficulty of hitting the target of reform and
rectitude in a place considered the den of idolatry. Working in such an atmosphere no doubt requires
unshakable will and determination, that is why the call unto Islam assumed a clandestine form so that
the Makkans should not be enraged by the unexpected surprise.
THE EARLY CONVERTS:
The Prophet (Peace be upon him) naturally initiated his sacred mission right from home and then
moved to the people closely associated with him. He called unto Islam whomsoever he thought would
attest the truth which had come from his Lord. In fact, a host of people who nursed not the least seed
of doubt as regards the Prophet (Peace be upon him), immediately responded and quite readily
embraced the true faith. They are known in the Islamic literature as the early converts.
Khadijah, the Prophet’s spouse, the mother of believers, was the first to enter the fold of Islam followed
by his freed slave Zaid bin Harithah, his cousin, ‘Ali bin Abi Talib, who had been living with him since his
early childhood, and next came his intimate friend Abu Bakr As-Siddiq (Abu Bakr the truth verifier). All
of those professed Islam on the very first day of the call. Abu Bakr, and from the first day he embraced
Islam, proved to be an energetic and most zealous activist. He was wealthy, obliging, mild and upright.
People used to frequent his house and draw nigh to him for his knowledge, amity, pleasant company
and business. He invited whomever he had confidence in to Islam and through his personal efforts a
good number of people converted to Islam, such as ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan Al-Umawi, Az-Zubair bin
‘Awwam Al-Asadi, ‘Abdur Rahman bin ‘Awf, Sa‘d bin Abi Waqqas, Az-Zuhri and Talhah bin ‘Ubaidullah
At-Tamimy. Those eight men constituted the forerunners and more specifically the vanguard of the new
faith in Arabia. Among the early Muslim were Bilal bin Rabah (the Abyssinian), Abu ‘Ubaidah bin AlJarrah
from Bani Harith bin Fahr (the most trustworthy of the Muslim Nation), Abu Salamahbin‘Abd AlAsad,
Al-Arqam Bin Abi Al-Arqam from the tribe ofMakhzum,‘Uthman bin Maz‘oun and histwo brothers
Qudama and ‘Abdullah, ‘Ubaidah bin Al-Harith bin Al-Muttalib bin ‘Abd Munaf, Sa‘id bin Zaid Al‘
Adawi and his wife Fatimah- daughter of Al-Khattab(the sister of‘Umar bin Al-Khattab),Khabbab
bin Al- Aratt, ‘Abdullâh bin Mas‘ud Al-Hadhali and many others. These were the Muslim predecessors. They belonged to various septs of Quraish. Ibn Hisham, a biographer, counted them to be more than forty.
Ibn Ishaq said: “Then people entered the fold of Islam in hosts, men or women and the new faith could
no longer be kept secret.”
The Prophet (Peace be upon him) used to meet and teach, the new converts, the religion in privacy
because the call to Islam was still running on an individual and secret basis. Revelation accelerated and
continued after the first verses of “O you wrapped in garments.” The verses and pieces of Sûrah
(chapters) revealed at this time were short ones with wonderful strong pauses and quite fascinating
rhythms in full harmony with that delicate whispering setting. The central topic running through them
focused on sanctifying the soul, and deterring the Muslims from falling prey to the deceptive glamour of
life. The early verses used as well to give a highly accurate account of the Hell and the Garden
(Paradise), leading the believers down a new course diametrically opposed to the ill practices rampant
amongst their compatriots.
AS
-SALAT (the Prayer):
Muqatil bin Sulaiman said: “Salât (prayer) was established as an obligatory ritual at an early stage of
the Islamic Call, a two rak‘ ah (unit of prayer) Salât in the morning and the same in the evening;
“And glorify the praises of your Lord in the ‘Ashi (i.e. the time period after the mid-noon till sunset) and
in the Ibkar (i.e. the time period from early morning or sunrise till before mid-noon).” [40:55]
Ibn Hijr said: “Definitely the Prophet (Peace be upon him) used to pray before ‘The Night Journey’ but
it still remains a matter of controversy whether or not the prayer was established as an obligatory ritual
before imposing the rules of the usual five prayers a day. It is related that obligatory prayer was
established twice a day, in the morning before sunrise and after sunset. It is reported through a chain
of narrators that when the Prophet (Peace be upon him) received the first Revelation, Gabriel - the
angel, proceeded and taught him how to observe Wudu (ablution). When the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) had finished, he took a handful of water and sprinkled it on his loins.
Ibn Hisham reported that when it was time for prayers, the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him)
and his Companions went into a mountain valley to pray secretly. Abu Talib once saw the Messenger of
Allâh (Peace be upon him) and Ali praying, he asked them what they were up to. When he got to
know that it was obligatory prayer, he told them to stay constant in their practice.
THE QURAISHITES LEARN ABOUT THE CALL:
This stage of the Call, even though conducted in a clandestine manner and on an individual basis, its
news leaked out and assumed a public interest all over Makkah. In the beginning, the Makkan leaders
did not care much about Muhammad (Peace be upon him) and took no heed of his teachings. At first,
they thought that Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was merely a religious philosophers like Omaiyah
bin Abi As-Salt, Quss bin Sa‘idah, ‘Amr bin Nufail and their ilk who used to philosophize on godship and
religious obligations. But this attitude of indifference soon changed into real apprehension. The
polytheists of Quraish began to watch Muhammad’s movements closely and anxiously for fear of
spreading his Call and producing a change in the prevalent mentality.
For three underground years of activism, a group of believers emerged stamped by a spirit of fraternity
and cooperation with one definite objective in their mind: propagating and deeply establishing the call
unto Islam. For full three years Muhammad (Peace be upon him) had been content to teach within a
rather narrow circle. The time had, however, come to preach the faith of the Lord openly. The angel
Gabriel had brought him down a further Revelation of Allâh’s Will to confront his people, invalidate their
falsehood and crush down their idolatrous practices.
STRIFE IN THE WAY OF THE CALL
THREE YEARS OF SECRETE CALL:
It is well-known that Makkah was the centre for the Arabs, and housed the custodians of Al-Ka‘bah.
Protection and guardianship of the idols and stone graven images that received veneration on the part
of all the Arabs lay in the hands of the Makkans. Hence the difficulty of hitting the target of reform and
rectitude in a place considered the den of idolatry. Working in such an atmosphere no doubt requires
unshakable will and determination, that is why the call unto Islam assumed a clandestine form so that
the Makkans should not be enraged by the unexpected surprise.
THE EARLY CONVERTS:
The Prophet (Peace be upon him) naturally initiated his sacred mission right from home and then
moved to the people closely associated with him. He called unto Islam whomsoever he thought would
attest the truth which had come from his Lord. In fact, a host of people who nursed not the least seed
of doubt as regards the Prophet (Peace be upon him), immediately responded and quite readily
embraced the true faith. They are known in the Islamic literature as the early converts.
Khadijah, the Prophet’s spouse, the mother of believers, was the first to enter the fold of Islam followed
by his freed slave Zaid bin Harithah, his cousin, ‘Ali bin Abi Talib, who had been living with him since his
early childhood, and next came his intimate friend Abu Bakr As-Siddiq (Abu Bakr the truth verifier). All
of those professed Islam on the very first day of the call. Abu Bakr, and from the first day he embraced
Islam, proved to be an energetic and most zealous activist. He was wealthy, obliging, mild and upright.
People used to frequent his house and draw nigh to him for his knowledge, amity, pleasant company
and business. He invited whomever he had confidence in to Islam and through his personal efforts a
good number of people converted to Islam, such as ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan Al-Umawi, Az-Zubair bin
‘Awwam Al-Asadi, ‘Abdur Rahman bin ‘Awf, Sa‘d bin Abi Waqqas, Az-Zuhri and Talhah bin ‘Ubaidullah
At-Tamimy. Those eight men constituted the forerunners and more specifically the vanguard of the new
faith in Arabia. Among the early Muslim were Bilal bin Rabah (the Abyssinian), Abu ‘Ubaidah bin AlJarrah
from Bani Harith bin Fahr (the most trustworthy of the Muslim Nation), Abu Salamahbin‘Abd AlAsad,
Al-Arqam Bin Abi Al-Arqam from the tribe ofMakhzum,‘Uthman bin Maz‘oun and histwo brothers
Qudama and ‘Abdullah, ‘Ubaidah bin Al-Harith bin Al-Muttalib bin ‘Abd Munaf, Sa‘id bin Zaid Al‘
Adawi and his wife Fatimah- daughter of Al-Khattab(the sister of‘Umar bin Al-Khattab),Khabbab
bin Al- Aratt, ‘Abdullâh bin Mas‘ud Al-Hadhali and many others. These were the Muslim predecessors. They belonged to various septs of Quraish. Ibn Hisham, a biographer, counted them to be more than forty.
Ibn Ishaq said: “Then people entered the fold of Islam in hosts, men or women and the new faith could
no longer be kept secret.”
The Prophet (Peace be upon him) used to meet and teach, the new converts, the religion in privacy
because the call to Islam was still running on an individual and secret basis. Revelation accelerated and
continued after the first verses of “O you wrapped in garments.” The verses and pieces of Sûrah
(chapters) revealed at this time were short ones with wonderful strong pauses and quite fascinating
rhythms in full harmony with that delicate whispering setting. The central topic running through them
focused on sanctifying the soul, and deterring the Muslims from falling prey to the deceptive glamour of
life. The early verses used as well to give a highly accurate account of the Hell and the Garden
(Paradise), leading the believers down a new course diametrically opposed to the ill practices rampant
amongst their compatriots.
AS
-SALAT (the Prayer):
Muqatil bin Sulaiman said: “Salât (prayer) was established as an obligatory ritual at an early stage of
the Islamic Call, a two rak‘ ah (unit of prayer) Salât in the morning and the same in the evening;
“And glorify the praises of your Lord in the ‘Ashi (i.e. the time period after the mid-noon till sunset) and
in the Ibkar (i.e. the time period from early morning or sunrise till before mid-noon).” [40:55]
Ibn Hijr said: “Definitely the Prophet (Peace be upon him) used to pray before ‘The Night Journey’ but
it still remains a matter of controversy whether or not the prayer was established as an obligatory ritual
before imposing the rules of the usual five prayers a day. It is related that obligatory prayer was
established twice a day, in the morning before sunrise and after sunset. It is reported through a chain
of narrators that when the Prophet (Peace be upon him) received the first Revelation, Gabriel - the
angel, proceeded and taught him how to observe Wudu (ablution). When the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) had finished, he took a handful of water and sprinkled it on his loins.
Ibn Hisham reported that when it was time for prayers, the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him)
and his Companions went into a mountain valley to pray secretly. Abu Talib once saw the Messenger of
Allâh (Peace be upon him) and Ali praying, he asked them what they were up to. When he got to
know that it was obligatory prayer, he told them to stay constant in their practice.
THE QURAISHITES LEARN ABOUT THE CALL:
This stage of the Call, even though conducted in a clandestine manner and on an individual basis, its
news leaked out and assumed a public interest all over Makkah. In the beginning, the Makkan leaders
did not care much about Muhammad (Peace be upon him) and took no heed of his teachings. At first,
they thought that Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was merely a religious philosophers like Omaiyah
bin Abi As-Salt, Quss bin Sa‘idah, ‘Amr bin Nufail and their ilk who used to philosophize on godship and
religious obligations. But this attitude of indifference soon changed into real apprehension. The
polytheists of Quraish began to watch Muhammad’s movements closely and anxiously for fear of
spreading his Call and producing a change in the prevalent mentality.
For three underground years of activism, a group of believers emerged stamped by a spirit of fraternity
and cooperation with one definite objective in their mind: propagating and deeply establishing the call
unto Islam. For full three years Muhammad (Peace be upon him) had been content to teach within a
rather narrow circle. The time had, however, come to preach the faith of the Lord openly. The angel
Gabriel had brought him down a further Revelation of Allâh’s Will to confront his people, invalidate their
falsehood and crush down their idolatrous practices.
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