The Rewards of the Hudaybiyyah Treaty (cont)
1. ‘Umrah al-Qada’
According to the terms of the agreement, the Prophet (sws)
could not offer ‘umrah during that journey, but he was
permitted to do so the next year, so he decided to offer the
‘umrah during exactly the same days in Dhu al-Qa‘dah 7th Hijri.
The number of people embarking upon this journey was larger
than that which had not been able to offer it the last time.
The reason for this could be the environment of peace that may
have prevailed after the agreement. As a preventive measure,
weaponry was taken along but it was left outside the
boundaries of the Haram in a valley and a contingent of 200
soldiers was assigned to guard it. According to the agreement,
the Quraysh leaders left Makkah for three days but the rest of
the population stood in lanes and on rooftops to watch the
arrival of the Muslims. After three days spent in offering the
rituals of ‘umrah and sacrifice of animals designated for this
purpose, the Prophet (sws) gave orders for the Muslims to
leave Makkah before sunset. This was the implementation of the
dream which the Prophet (sws) had seen a year before. As
promised by God, this entire journey was undertaken without
any fear and no mischief was created from any source.
2. Acceptance of Islam by the Sons of the Quraysh
Some important sons of the Quraysh were forced to think
realistically after the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah and subsequent
successes of the Muslims and they became convinced of the
truth of Islam. Thus, Khalid ibn Walid (rta) who had fought on
behalf of the Quraysh in many battles was now ready to succumb
to the attack of Islam itself. He left Makkah to go to Madinah
to accept Islam. On the way, he met ‘Amr ibn al-‘As who asked
him about his destination. He opened up his heart to him,
thinking that he could no longer deny reality and told him
that he was going to accept Islam. ‘Amr ibn al-‘As said that
he had himself reached the same conclusion. Both of them came
to the Prophet (sws) and entered the fold of Islam. Their
services to the cause of Islam constitute a radiant period in
the history of Islam. ‘Uthman ibn Talhah was friends with
Khalid ibn Walid. When the latter told him that he was going
to Madinah, he also was ready to go along and accepted Islam
with the other two. It was also during the peace times that
Mu‘awiyyah ibn Sufyan came to Madinah and accepted Islam. It
seems that he came in a state of great poverty. One Hadith
relates that when a companion asked the Prophet’s (sws) advice
about giving Mu‘awiyyah his daughter’s hand in marriage, the
Prophet (sws) said that he was poor. Obviously, if the son of
the leader of the Quraysh was poor in Madinah, it was because
he had migrated and it was not possible for him to bring any
possessions, so he was still in want at that time. This is why
the Prophet (sws) must have informed those asking for advice
about his financial status.
3. Call to Faith during Peace Times
After the agreement on peace with the Quraysh, the believers
had an opportunity to spread out within the country and preach
Islam, as a result of which the new faith became well known
throughout Arabia and many people embraced it. However, books
of biography and history are silent on the details of this.
‘Allamah Shibli writes in his Sirat al-Nabi that after the
agreement, the Prophet (sws), addressing the believers,
advised them that they should spread out in the country like
the apostles of Jesus (sws) and call people towards Islam.
Under the new circumstances, every Muslim worked for preaching
according to his/her own capacity because then there was no
danger of a backlash from anywhere. Obviously, every Muslim
must have implemented this to the utmost possible.
It seems that during those times, tribes sent their own people
to assess the situation, or to learn about the new religion.
Some of the questions they raised and the answers given to
them are found in books of Hadith. Mention is also found of
the People of Safa, for whom a platform near the Masjid-e
Nabawi had been built. This was their school. Some companions
taught them about faith and, after gaining knowledge from the
Prophet (sws), they would return to their tribe to preach
themselves. It was during those times that the famous
Companion, Abu Hurayrah (rta) came from the tribe Daws to
learn about Islam.
Some of the tribes that had supported Muslims during the
victory over Makkah and sent thousands, not even hundreds of
men to serve as soldiers in their army included those that had
never been mentioned before the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah such as
the Banu Layth, the Banu Salim, the Banu al-Husayn etc. It is
obvious that the call to religion reached them during times of
peace, they were able to evaluate it and later, guided towards
faith, they participated in jihad for the success of their
religion. Ten thousand Muslims took part in the jihad at the
time of the victory of Makkah. This could not have been
possible without the Muslims, who, taking advantage of the
peaceful environment, made efforts to spread the message of
Islam in each and every corner of Arabia and the non
believers, after having assessed the lifestyle of the Muslims
at close range, recognized and accepted the truth of Islam.
Many groups were sent towards tribes in the days after the
Treaty of Hudaybiyyah under orders to preach Islam and, if
they faced resistance, to fight them. The members of these
groups were few and limited. Some tribes showed an inclination
towards Islam; some dispersed and others were ready to fight.
Sometimes it so happened that tribes would recite the shahadah
or greet them by saying al-salam u ‘alaykum but the group
members thought that they were doing so out of fear of getting
killed and that they were really not Muslims at heart.
Therefore, they dealt with them with severity. Such Muslims
faced anger from the Prophet (sws). The natural result of the
environment created by the agreement was that Arab tribes
became curious to know more about Islam and when they thought
about it without prejudice, they saw much in it to their
benefit. This is why the number of Muslims increased
exponentially during these times.
The Prophet (sws) also sent his ambassadors to some of the
tribes. According to Ibn Sa‘d, as a consequence of one such
ambassadorship, Farwah ibn ‘Amr, the leader of the Banu Jazam
accepted Islam. Jayfar and ‘Abd, leaders of the tribe Azd also
came within the fold of Islam. Ghassan, Quda‘ah and the Banu
‘Adhra’ also accepted Islam during this period. A large number
of people from the Banu Hanifah came to Madinah and accepted
Islam.
The tribes which had expressed their loyalty with the Prophet
(sws) before the victory of Makkah are:
i. Banu Sa‘d ibn Bakr
Dammam ibn Tha‘labah, the leader of this tribe came to Madinah
and tied his camel to the door of the mosque. When he entered
the mosque, the Prophet (sws) was sitting among his
companions. Dammam asked while standing: “Which among you is
the grandson of ‘Abd al-Muttalib?” The Prophet (sws) answered
that it was he. He asked: “Are you Muhammad (sws)?” the
Prophet replied in the affirmative. He said: “O’ Ibn al-Muttalib!
I will ask you a few questions, but in an abrupt manner. Do
not take offence.” The Prophet (sws) answered that he should
go ahead and ask; he would not be offended. Dammam asked: “I
ask you in the name of your Lord, the Lord of your forefathers
and the Lord of the coming generations, is it true that God
has sent you as His Messenger?” The Prophet (sws) answered:
“Yes! God is witness”. Dammam again asked him in the name of
God, whether He had instructed him that they should worship
Him only, not associate anyone with Him and forget all those
idols that had been worshipped by their ancestors. The Prophet
(sws) answered: “Yes! God is witness to this.” He asked again:
has God ordered us to offer the prayer five times a day?” The
Prophet (sws) answered: “Yes! God is witness.” In this way, D
ammam asked about other obligations: the zakah, the fast, the
hajj and the rest of instructions and the Prophet (sws)
answered by holding God as witness. Finally, Dammam recited
shahadah for the unity of God and the messengership of the
Prophet (sws) and promised that he would implement the
obligations advised by the Prophet (sws), and not add or
subtract from them. After this, he turned and mounted his
camel. He gave a full account to his tribe upon his return and
the entire tribe accepted Islam.
ii. Mazinah
Four hundred people of this tribe came and accepted Islam.
Then they expressed a desire to migrate but their abode was
not very far from Madinah, so the Prophet (sws) declared their
place of residence as one of migration. They remained active
in preaching Islam and took part in later battles fought for
Islam.
iii. ‘Abd al-Qays
A group comprising 14 members of this tribe came to accept
Islam and gain knowledge about its instructions. They
complained that they came across dangerous non-believers so
they could come to Madinah only to the most famous Haram.
According to one narrative, the leadership of the group was
with Mundhir ibn ‘A’idh, but according to Ibn Hisham, Jarud
ibn ‘Amr was leading it. He was a Christian. He asked: “O
Muhammad! I am already a follower of a divine religion. If I
leave it for yours, are you a witness to your faith being the
true one?” The Prophet (sws) said that he gave a guarantee
that God had provided him with a religion better than his
previous one. Thus, Jarud became a Muslim. The tribe of ‘Abd
Qays was famous for extracting wine by fermenting it in
special utensils. They asked: “O Messenger of God! May we be
sacrificed for you! Which ones from among drinks are allowed?”
The Prophet (sws) answered: “Do not drink that which is made
in naqir.” The people, surprised, asked what he knew of naqir.
The Prophet (sws) replied:” You empty the centre of the bark
of a tree. That is the naqir.” The Prophet (sws) also forbade
drinking that which was made in dubba (pumpkin) and muzaffat
(utensils that had their pores blocked) and forbade any use of
such pots so that these people would change their livelihood.
Then he instructed them about the basic tenets of Islam:
shahadah, salah, zakah, fasting, giving one fifth of war booty
towards the cause of God and His Prophet.
iv. Tay
This was the tribe of the reputedly magnanimous leader, Hatim
Ṭa’i. His son, ‘Adi ibn Hatim was its king and very
influential. He had accepted Christianity and believed that it
was the right religion. Upon hearing of the Prophet’s
victories, he was angry, and when the Muslims turned their
attention to North of Arabia, he went towards Syria. When
Muslims attacked his region, his daughter was among the
captives. She introduced herself to the Prophet (sws) and
asked for her life to be saved. The Prophet set her free after
giving her gifts of clothes, equipping her for the journey and
giving her animals to transport her. When she reached Syria
and met her brother, she was quite upset with him, saying that
if Mohammed (sws) was a prophet, there was good in supporting
him; if he was a king, there was no humiliation in agreeing to
obey him. ‘Adi decided to go to Madinah. He went there and
introduced himself when the Prophet (sws) invited him to his
house. On the way, an old woman stopped the Prophet (sws) and
expressed her need. The discussion took longer than necessary
and ‘Adi thought that a person who gave so much time to a
lowly old woman could not be a king. When they entered the
house, the Prophet (sws) spread out his cushion on the floor
and asked ‘Adi to sit on it while he took the floor. This
again impressed ‘Adi. The Prophet (sws) asked: “ ‘Adi, do you
belong to the Christian sect of Kurkusi?” ‘Adi replied in the
affirmative. The Prophet (sws) asked if he took one fourth of
war booty from his people as their leader. ‘Adi again said
yes. The Prophet (sws) said that this was not allowed in his
religion. ‘Adi said that he was right and thought to himself
that he must really be a messenger of God; ordinary people
would not have known this fact. Then the Prophet (sws) said:
“Perhaps the poverty of my companions, the large number of
their enemies and their own lesser number is stopping you from
entering my faith. Remember that soon these people shall
possess so much wealth that they will wish to give it away but
there will be no one to take it. You think that rule will
always be with others, but remember that the white palaces of
Babul will be with Muslims soon.” Hearing this, ‘Adi accepted
Islam.
A group under the lead of Zayd al-Khayl from the tribe of Tay
reached Madinah. The Prophet (sws) presented the details of
the religion to them and all of its members accepted Islam.
The Prophet (sws) changed the name of the leader to Zayd al-Khayl.
v. Banu Tamim
Aqra‘ ibn Habis, ‘Atarud and Zabarqan ibn Badar were part of
the group of this tribe. In accordance with their tradition,
upon reaching Madinah, they sang praises in verse of their
tribe and its leaders. The Prophet (sws) asked Hassan ibn
Thabit (rta) to answer them. After this, one of their
articulate orators gave a speech and the Prophet (sws) again
asked one of his companions to answer. The group accepted that
the orators and poets of the Prophet (sws) were better than
their own. After accepting this superiority, the group members
accepted Islam and the Prophet (sws) gave them leave to go
after giving them gifts.
vi. Banu Azd
Under the leadership of Surad ibn ‘Abdullah, a group of this
tribe came to Madinah and accepted Islam. The Prophet (sws)
made Surad (rta) the leader and asked him to spread knowledge
of Islam in Yemen and bring the surrounding tribes under his
control. Obeying this order, when Surad (rta) went to a city,
its inhabitants fought him and were defeated. They accepted
Islam and sent their delegation to Madinah.
vii. Banu Kindah
Eighty people from this tribe, under the leadership of Ash‘ath
ibn Qays reached Madinah. They entered the Masjid-e Nabawi
such that they had combed their hair nicely and worn kohl in
their eyes. They wore cloaks embroidered with silk. The
Prophet (sws) asked if they had not accepted Islam. They
answered that they had already done so. The Prophet (sws) then
asked why he was seeing silk attire on their bodies. They
answered that they were unaware of this instruction and tore
off the silk part of their cloaks.
(Translated by
Nikhat Sattar)
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