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A delegation of Quraysh leaders approached Abu Talib to demand that
Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace)
be expelled from his tribe. He replied, "He would prefer death to Islam, but he could
not expel his nephew from the tribe to be executed by them". However he promised them
to counsel Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him
peace) to leave Islam. He told them to come the next day. Abu Talib then sent
for Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace)
and told him what the Quraysh had suggested. The Prophet
(may Allah bless him and grant him peace) inquired what his uncle wanted him to
abstain from. Abu Talib said that the Quraysh wanted him (Muhammad) (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to stop preaching his
new religion and never to talk of such things again. The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, "O, Dear
uncle, the day I began my Apostleship, I trusted none but Allah and today I have none but
Him to trust. And if you want to banish me from the tribe, you are free to do so". Abu Talib did not banish his nephew from his tribe. He told the Quraysh
that he could not banish Muhammad (may Allah bless him and
grant him peace). He however did promise not to accept his religion in his
lifetime. When the Quraysh saw their efforts going futile, they tried to
negotiate directly with the Prophet (may Allah bless him
and grant him peace). They chose a person named Atbah bin Rabbiya, known for
his dignity, culture and tolerance to hold talks with the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). He began: "O,
Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace),
we have always found you truthful and trustworthy. Everyone appreciates your courtesy. You
have never wronged anyone. Today, your statements and deeds have shaken this city. No one
seems peaceful. You are openly refuting the old established religious faith and are
denying our sacred idols. You insist on their negation. You are one of us and from our
ancestors. How can you delimit your own ancestors?" "O Muhammad (may Allah bless him
and grant him peace), express explicitly your demands so that we could meet
them. If you need a woman, be assured that the Quraysh are willing to give you their
beautiful daughters. If you want wealth and splendour we will give it to you happily. If
you have intentions to rule Makkah, we can fulfil even this wish, but on the condition
that you do not refute our faiths and call our idols as useless pieces of stone. We are
not tolerant towards such insults. O Muhammad (may Allah
bless him and grant him peace), be aware that your each and every word pierces
our hearts like a poisoned arrow. We are running short of our patience". |
The Prophet (may Allah bless him and
grant him peace) listened to him with great patience and grace. He replied,
"Whatever I say, is not invented by me, but comes from Allah. Whatever in verses, is
revealed to me by Him is by chance in Arabic, a language you can understand well. It is
practicable, and when I say that the religion of your ancestors is unfounded and you are
the pagans -- I speak the word of Allah. I shall carry out my Apostleship in spite of your
threats. Adopt righteousness, shun paganism and enter the realm of Allah’s religion.
That is the Decree of Allah". 6. When Atbah returned to his people, he vowed that he had never heard
such verse before. Those verses were neither the rhetoric of an astrologer nor a spell or
charm of any sort. Whatever he had heard that day were to bear impressions only to be
revealed in future. When Atbah bin Rabbiya returned, he told the Quraysh that they were
free to incur whatever treatment they wanted on Muhammad
(may Allah bless him and grant him peace). He advised them however not to
obstruct Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace)
but to leave him alone. The Quraysh rejected this by saying that Atbah had been
overwhelmed by Muhammad’s (may Allah bless him and
grant him peace) words. |