Delegations and Expeditions following Al-Muraisi‘ Ghazwah
1.A military expedition led by ‘Abdur Rahman bin ‘Auf was despatched to the habitation of Bani
Kalb in Doumat Al-Jandal in Sha‘ban 6 Hijri. Before setting out, the Prophet (Peace be upon him)
summoned ‘Abdur Rahman, and placed his hand on the latter’s hand invoking Allâh’s blessings
and giving him commandments to act magnanimously during the war. He told him to marry the
king’s daughter if they obeyed him. ‘Abdur Rahman stayed among those people for three days,
invited them to Islam and they responded positively. He then did marry the king’s daughter
Tamadur bint Al-Asbagh.
2.In the same month and year, ‘Ali bin Abi Talib was despatched at the head of a platoon to the
habitation of Bani Sa‘d bin Bakr in a place called Fadk. Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him)
had been reported that those had rallied ranks to support the Jews. The Muslim fighters used to
march in the day and lurk at night. On their way, they captured an enemy scout who admitted
being sent to Khaibar tribe, to offer them support in return for their dates. ‘Ali and his
companions raided their encampment, captured five hundred camels and two thousand goats,
but Banu Sa‘d, with their chieftain Wabr bin ‘Aleem had fled away.
3.An expedition led by Abu Bakr As-Siddiq or Zaid bin Haritha was despatched to Wadi Al-Qura in
Ramadan 6 Hijri after Fazara sept had made an attempt at the Prophet’s life. Following the
morning prayer, the detachment was given orders to raid the enemy. Some of them were killed
and others captured. Amongst the captives, were Umm Qirfa and her beautiful daughter, who
was sent to Makkah as a ransom for the release of some Muslim prisoners there. Umm Qirfa’s
attempts at the Prophet’s life recoiled on her, and the thirty horsemen she had gathered and
sustained to implement her evil scheme were all killed.
4.Anas bin Malik reported that some people belonging to tribe of ‘Uraina came to Allâh’s Messenger
(Peace be upon him) and made pretensions to Islam. They stayed in Madinah but found its
climate uncongenial, so they were asked to pitch their tents in the pastures nearby. They did so
and were all right. They then fell on the Prophet’s shepherd and killed him, turned apostates
from Islam and drove off the camels. This news reached the Prophet (Peace be upon him), who
sent a group of twenty Muslims led by Karz bin Jabir Al-Fihri on their track. They were brought
and handed over to him. He had their hands and feet cut off, their eyes gouged out in
recompense for their behaviour, and then they were thrown on the stony ground until they died.
l
Biographers also reported ‘Amr bin Omaiya Ad-Damari and Salamah bin Abi Salamah to have
been sent on an errand to kill Abu Sufyan, the chief of Quraish, who had already sent a bedouin
to kill the Prophet (Peace be upon him). The two-men mission failed except for three polytheists
killed on the way. It is noteworthy that all the foregone invasions did not imply real bitter
fighting, they were rather skirmishes or punitive military manoeuvres carried out to deter some
enemies still unsubdued. Deep meditation on the development of war circumstances reveal the
continuous collapse of the morale among the enemies of Islam, who had come to understand
that they were no longer in a position to contain the Islamic call or weaken its active drive. This
state of affairs reached its climax in Al-Hudaibiyah Treaty when the two belligerent parties,
believers and disbelievers, entered into a truce agreement that pointed markedly to the ever growing
power
Al-HUDAIBIYAH TREATY (Dhul Qa‘dah 6 A.H.):
When Arabia began to witness the large impressive sweep in favour of the Muslims, the forerunners of
the great conquest and success of the Islamic Call started gradually to loom on the demographic
horizon, and the true believers restored their undisputed right to observe worship in the sacred
sanctuary.
It was about the sixth year Hijri when the Prophet (Peace be upon him) saw in a dream, while he was
still in Madinah, that he had entered the sacred sanctuary in Makkah in security with his followers, and
was performing the ceremonies of ‘Umrah (lesser pilgrimage). Their heads were being shaved and hair
cut off. As soon as he informed some of his Companions the contents of his dream, their hearts leapt
up with joy since they found in it the actualization of their deep longing to take part in pilgrimage and its hallowed rites after an exile of six years.
The Prophet (Peace be upon him) had his clothes washed, mounted his camel and marched out towards
Makkah at the head of fifteen hundred Muslims including his wife Umm Salamah. Some desert bedouins
whose Faith was lukewarm hung back and made excuses. They carried no weapons with them except
sheathed swords because they had no intention of fighting. Ibn Umm Maktum was mandated to dispose
the affairs of Madinah during the Prophet’s absence. As they approached Makkah, and in a place called
Dhi Hulaifa, he ordered that the sacrificial animals be garlanded, and all believers donned Al-Ihrâm, the
pilgrim’s garb. He despatched a reconnoiterer to hunt around for news of the enemy. The man came
back to tell the Prophet (Peace be upon him) that a large number of slaves, as well as a huge army,
were gathered to oppose him, and that the road to Makkah was completely blocked. The Prophet
(Peace be upon him) consulted his Companions, who were of the opinion that they would fight none
unless they were debarredfrom performing their pilgrimage.
The Quraishites, on their part, held a meeting during which they considered the whole situation and
decided to resist the Prophet’s mission at all costs. Two hundred horsemen led by Khalid bin Al-Waleed
were despatched to take the Muslims by surprise during Zuhr (the afternoon) prayer. However, the
rules of prayer of fear were revealed meanwhile and thus Khalid and his men missed the chance. The
Muslims avoided marching on that way and decided to follow a rugged rocky one. Here, Khalid ran back
to Quraish to brief them on the latest situation.
When the Muslims reached a spot called Thaniyat Al-Marar, the Prophet’s camel stumbled and knelt
down and was too stubborn to move. Muhammad (Peace be upon him) swore he would willingly accede
to any plan they put forward that would glorify Allâh’s sanctities. He then reprovingly spurred his camel
and it leapt up. They resumed their march and came to pitch their tents at the furthest part of AlHudaibiyah
beside
Seeing an overwhelming tendency towards reconciliation among their chiefs, some reckless, fight-prone youngsters of Quraish devised a wicked plan that could hinder the peace treaty. They decided to
infiltrate into the camp of the Muslims and produce intentional skirmishes that might trigger the fuse of
war. Muhammad bin Maslamah, chief of the Muslim guards, took them captives, but in view of the
l “
And He it is Who has withheld their hands from you and your hands from them in the midst of
Makkah, after He had made you victors over them.” [48:24]
Time passed. Negotiations went on but with no results. Then the Prophet (Peace be upon him) desired
‘Umar to see the nobles of Quraish on his behalf. ‘Umar excused himself on account of the personal
enmity of Quraish; he had, moreover, no influential relatives in the city who could shield him from
danger; and he pointed to ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan, who belonged to one of the most powerful families in
Makkah, as the suitable envoy. ‘Uthman went to Abu Sufyan and other chiefs and told them that the
Muslims had come only to visit and pay their homage to the Sacred House, to do worship there, and
that they had no intention to fight. He was also asked to call them to Islam, and give glad tidings to the
believers in Makkah, women and men, that the conquest was approaching and Islam was surely to
prevail because Allâh would verily establish His religion in Makkah. ‘Uthman also assured them that
after the performance of ceremonies they would soon depart peacefully, but the Quraishites were
adamant and not prepared to grant them the permission to visit Al-Ka‘bah. They, however, offered
‘
Uthman the permission to perform the pilgrimage, if he so desired in his individual capacity, but
‘
Uthman declined the offer saying: “How is it possible that I avail myself of this opportunity, when the
Prophet (Peace be upon him) is denied of it?” The Muslims anxiously waited for the arrival of ‘Uthman
with mingled feelings of fear and anxiety. But his arrival was considerably delayed and a foul play was
suspected on the part of Quraish. The Muslims were greatly worried and took a solemn pledge at the
hand of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) that they would sacrifice their lives to avenge the death of
their Companion and stand firmly by their master, Muhammad (Peace be upon him), under all
conditions. This pledge goes by the name of Bay‘at Ar-Ridwan (a covenant of fealty). The first men to
take a pledge were Abu Sinan Al-Asadi and Salamah bin Al-Akwa‘, who gave a solemn promise to die in
the cause of Truth three times, at the front of the army, in the middle and in the rear. The Prophet
(Peace be upon him) caught his left hand on behalf of ‘Uthman. This fealty was sworn under a tree,
with ‘Umar holding the Prophet’s hand and Ma‘qil bin Yasar holding a branch of the tree up. The Noble
Qur’ân has referred to this pledge in the following words:
l “
Indeed, Allâh was pleased with the believers when they gave their Bai‘a (pledge) to you [O
Muhammad (Peace be upon him)] under the tree.” [48:18]
When Quraish saw the firm determination of the Muslims to shed the last drop of blood for the defence
of their Faith, they came to their senses and realized that Muhammad’s followers could not be cowed
down by these tactics. After some further interchange of messages they agreed to conclude a treaty of
reconciliation and peace with the Muslims. The clauses of the said treaty go as follows:
1.The Muslims shall return this time and come back next year, but they shall not stay in Makkah
for more than three days.
2.They shall not come back armed but can bring with them swords only sheathed in scabbards and
these shall be kept in bags.
3.War activities shall be suspended for ten years, during which both parties will live in full security
and neither will raise sword against the other.
4.If anyone from Quraish goes over to Muhammad (Peace be upon him) without his guardian’s
permission, he should be sent back to Quraish, but should any of Muhammad’s followers return
to Quraish, he shall not be sent back.
5.Whosoever to join Muhammad (Peace be upon him), or enter into treaty with him, should have
the liberty to do so; and likewise whosoever wishes to join Quraish, or enter into treaty with
them, should be allowed to do so.
Some dispute arose with regard to the preamble. For example, when the agreement was to be committed to writing, ‘Ali bin Abi Talib, who acted as a scribe began with the words: Bismillâh irRahman
ir-Raheem,
It was during this time while the treaty was being written that Abu Jandal, Suhail’s son, appeared on
the scene. He was brutally chained and was staggering with privation and fatigue. The Prophet (Peace
be upon him) and his Companions were moved to pity and tried to secure his release but Suhail was
adamant and said: “To signify that you are faithful to your contract, an opportunity has just arrived.”
The Prophet (Peace be upon him) said: “But the treaty was not signed when your son entered the
camp.” Upon this, he burst forth and said, “but the terms of the treaty were agreed upon.” It was
indeed an anxious moment. On the one hand, Abu Jandal was lamenting at the top of his voice, “Am I
to be returned to the polytheists that they might entice me from my religion, O Muslims!” but, on the
other hand, the faithful engagement was also considered to be necessary, above all other
considerations. The Prophet’s heart welled up with sympathy, but he wanted to honour his word at all
costs. He consoled Abu Jandal and said, “Be patient, resign yourself to the Will of Allâh. Allâh is going to
provide for you and your helpless companions relief and means of escape. We have concluded a treaty
of peace with them and we have taken the pledge in the Name of Allâh. We are, therefore, under no
circumstances prepared to break it.” ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab could not help giving vent to the deep-seated
agony of his heart. He rose to his feet uttering words implying deep hatred and extreme indignation
and requested Abu Jandal to take his sword and kill Suhail, but the son spared his father. However, in
silent resignation was therefore, Abu Jandal borne away with his chains.
When the peace treaty had been concluded, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) ordered his Companions
to slaughter their sacrificial animals, but they were too depressed to do that. The Prophet (Peace be
upon him) gave instructions in this regard three times but with negative response. He told his wife
Umm Salamah about this attitude of his Companions. She advised that he himself take the initiative,
slaughter his animal and have his head shaved. Seeing that, the Muslims, with rended hearts, started
to slaughter their animals and shave their heads. They even almost killed one another because of their
distress. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) prayed three times for those who shaved their heads and
once for those who cut their hair. A camel was sacrificed on behalf of seven men and a cow on behalf of
the same number of people. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) sacrificed a camel which once belonged
to Abu Jahl and which the Muslims had seized as booty at Badr, thus enraging the polytheists. During
Al-Hudaibiyah campaign, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) permitted Ka‘b bin ‘Ujrah, who was in a
state of Ihram (state of ritual consecration of the pilgrim) for ‘Umrah (lesser pilgrimage) to shave his
head due to illness, on the condition that he will pay compensation by sacrificing a sheep, fasting for
three days or feeding six needy persons. Concerning this, the following verse was revealed:
l “
And whosoever of you is ill or has an ailment in his scalp (necessitating shaving), he must pay a
Fidyah (ransom) of either fasting (three days) or giving Sadaqa (feeding six poor persons) or
offering sacrifice (one sheep).” [2:196]
Meanwhile some believing women emigrated to Madinah and asked the Prophet (Peace be upon him)
for refuge which they were granted. When their families demanded their return, he would not hand
them back because the following verse was revealed:
l “
O you who believe! When believing women come to you as emigrants, examine them, Allâh
knows best as to their Faith, then if you know them for true believers, send them not back to the disbelievers, they are not lawful (wives) for the disbelievers nor are the disbelievers lawful
(husbands) for them. But give the disbelievers that (amount of money) which they have spent
[as their Mahr] to them. And there will be no sin on you to marry them if you have paid their
Mahr to them. Likewise hold not the disbelieving women as wives …” [60:10]
The reason why the believing women were not handed back was either because they were not originally
included in the terms of the treaty, which mentioned only men, or because the Qur’ân abrogated any
terms dealing with women in the verse:
l “
O Prophet! When believing women come to you to give you the Bai‘a (Pledge), that they will not
associate anything in worship with Allâh …” [60:12]
This is the verse which forbade Muslim women from marrying disbelieving men. Likewise, Muslim men
were commanded to terminate their marriages to disbelieving women. In compliance with this
injunction, ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab divorced two wives he had married before he embraced Islam;
Mu‘awiyah married the first woman, and Safwan bin Omaiyah married the second.
ALHUDAIBIYAH TREATY: SOCIO
-POLITICAL IMPACT:
A series of events confirmed the profound wisdom and splendid results of the peace treaty which Allâh
called “a manifest victory”. How could it be otherwise when Quraish had recognized the legitimate
Muslims’ existence on the scene of political life in Arabia, and began to deal with the believers on equal
terms. Quraish in the light of the articles of the treaty, had indirectly relinquished its claim to religious
leadership, and admitted that they were no longer interested in people other than Quraish, and washed
their hands of any sort of intervention in the religious future of the Arabian Peninsula. The Muslims did
not have in mind to seize people’s property or kill them through bloody wars, nor did they ever think of
pursuing any coercive approaches in their endeavours to propagate Islam, on the contrary, their sole
target was to provide an atmosphere of freedom as regards ideology or religion:
l “Then whosoever wills, let him believe, and whosoever wills, let him disbelieve.” [18:29]
The Muslims, on the other hand, had the opportunity to spread Islam over areas not then explored.
When there was armistice, war was abolished, and men met and consulted together, none talked about
Islam intelligently without entering it; within the two years following the conclusion of the treaty double
as many entered Islam as ever before. This is supported by the fact that the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) went out to Al-Hudaibiyah with only 1,400 men, but when he set out to liberate Makkah, two
years later, he had 10,000 men with him.
The article of the treaty pertaining to cessation of hostilities for ten years points directly to the utter
failure of political haughtiness exercised by Quraish and its allies, and functions as evidence of the
collapse and impotence of the war instigator.
Qhad been obliged to lose those advantages in return for one seemingly in its favour but does not
actually bear any harm against the Muslims, i.e., the article that speaks of handing over believing men
who seek refuge with the Muslims without their guardians’ consent to Quraish. At first glance, it was a
most distressing clause and was considered objectionable in the Muslim camp. However, in the course
of events, it proved to be a great blessing. The Muslims sent back to Makkah were not likely to
renounce the blessings of Islam; contrariwise, those very Muslims turned out to be centres of influence
for Islam. It was impossible to think that they would become apostates or renegades. The wisdom
behind this truce assumed its full dimensions in some subsequent events. After the Prophet (Peace be
upon him) had reached Madinah, Abu Baseer, who had escaped from Quraish, came to him as a
Muslim; Quraish sent two men demanding his return, so the Prophet (Peace be upon him) handed him
over to them. On the way to Makkah, Abu Baseer managed to kill one of them, and the other one fled
to Madinah with Abu Baseer in pursuit. When he reached the Prophet (Peace be upon him), he said,
“
Your obligation is over and Allâh has freed you from it. You duly handed me over to the men, and Allâh has rescued me from them.” The Prophet (Peace be upon him) said, “Woe is his mother, he would have
kindled a war if there had been others with him.” When he heard that, he knew that he would be
handed back to them, so he fled from Madinah and went as far as Saif Al-Bahr. The other Muslims who
were oppressed in Makkah began to escape to Abu Baseer. He was joined by Abu Jandal and others
until a fair-sized colony was formed and soon sought revenge on Quraish and started to intercept their
caravans. The pagans of Makkah finding themselves unable to control those exiled colonists, begged
the Prophet (Peace be upon him) to do away with the clause which governed the extradition. They
implored him by Allâh and by their ties of kinship to send for the group, saying that whoever joined the
Muslims in Madinah would be safe from them. So the Prophet (Peace be upon him) sent for the group
and they responded, as expected, positively.
These are the realities of the clauses of the truce treaty and as it seems they all function in favour of
the nascent Islamic state. However, two points in the treaty made it distasteful to some Muslims,
namely they were not given access to the Holy Sanctuary that year, and the seemingly humiliating
attitude as regards reconciliation with the pagans of Quraish. ‘Umar, unable to contain himself for the
distress taking full grasp of his heart, went to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and said: “Aren’t you
the true Messenger of Allâh?” The Prophet (Peace be upon him) replied calmly, “Why not?” ‘Umar again
spoke and asked: “Aren’t we on the path of righteousness and our enemies in the wrong?” Without
showing any resentment, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) replied that it was so. On getting this reply
he further urged: “Then we should not suffer any humiliation in the matter of Faith.” The Prophet
(Peace be upon him) was unruffled and with perfect confidence said: “I am the true Messenger of Allâh,
I never disobey Him, He shall help me.” “Did you not tell us,” rejoined ‘Umar, “that we shall perform
pilgrimage?” “But I have never told you,” replied the Prophet (Peace be upon him), “that we shall do so
this very year.” ‘Umar was silenced. But his mind was disturbed. He went to Abu Bakr and expressed
his feelings before him. Abu Bakr who had never been in doubt as regards the Prophet’s truthfulness
and veracity confirmed what the Prophet (Peace be upon him) had told him. In due course the Chapter
of Victory (48th) was revealed saying:
l “
Verily, We have given you [O Muhammad (Peace be upon him)] a manifest victory.” [48:1]
The Messenger of Allâh(Peace be upon him) summoned ‘Umar and imported to him the happy tidings.
‘
Umar was overjoyed, and greatly regretted his former attitude. He used to spend in charity, observe
fasting and prayer and free as many slaves as possible in expiation for that reckless attitude he had
assumed.
The early part of the year 7 A.H. witnessed the Islamization of three prominent men of Makkah, ‘Amr
bin Al-‘As, Khalid bin Al-Waleed and ‘Uthman bin Talhah. On their arrival and entrance into the fold of
Islam, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said, “Quraish has given us its own blood.”
No comments:
Post a Comment