Pre-Islamic Arabia
The Arabian Peninsula
was largely arid and volcanic, making agriculture difficult except near
oases or springs. The landscape was thus dotted with towns and cities,
two prominent ones being
Mecca and
Medina.
Medina was a large flourishing agricultural settlement, while Mecca was
an important financial center for many surrounding tribes.
[39] Communal life was essential for survival in the
desert
conditions, as people needed support against the harsh environment and
lifestyle. Tribal grouping was encouraged by the need to act as a unit,
this unity being based on the bond of kinship by blood.
[40] Indigenous Arabs were either nomadic
or sedentary, the former constantly travelling from one place to
another seeking water and pasture for their flocks, while the latter
settled and focused on trade and agriculture. Nomadic survival was also
dependent on raiding caravans or oases, the nomads not viewing this as a
crime.
In pre-Islamic Arabia, gods or goddesses were viewed as protectors of
individual tribes, their spirits being associated with sacred trees,
stones, springs and wells. As well as being the site of an annual pilgrimage, the
Kaaba
shrine in Mecca housed 360 idol statues of tribal patron deities. Aside
from these gods, the Arabs shared a common belief in a supreme deity
called
Allah[citation needed] (literally "the god"), who was remote from their everyday concerns and thus not the object of cult or ritual.
[citation needed] Three goddesses were associated with Allah as his daughters:
Allāt,
Manāt and
al-‘Uzzá. Monotheistic communities existed in Arabia, including
Christians and
Jews.
Hanifs
– native pre-Islamic Arab monotheists – are also sometimes listed
alongside Jews and Christians in pre-Islamic Arabia, although their
historicity is disputed amongst scholars. According to Muslim tradition, Muhammad himself was a Hanif and one of the descendants of
Ishmael, son of
Abraham.
Life in Mecca
Muhammad was born and lived in Mecca for the first 52 years of his
life (570–622). This period is generally divided into two phases, before
and after declaring the
prophecy.
Childhood and early life
Muhammad was born in the month of
Rabi' al-awwal in 570. He belonged to the
Banu Hashim clan, one of the prominent families of
Mecca, although it seems not to have been prosperous during Muhammad's early lifetime. The Banu Hashim clan was part of the
Quraysh tribe. Tradition places the year of Muhammad's birth as corresponding with the
Year of the Elephant, which is named after the failed destruction of Mecca that year by the
Aksumite king Abraha
who had in his army a number of elephants. 20th-century scholarship has
suggested alternative dates for this event, such as 568 or 569.
Muhammad's father, Abdullah, died almost six months before he was born.
According to Islamic tradition, soon after Muhammad's birth he was sent
to live with a Bedouin family in the desert, as the desert life was
considered healthier for infants. Muhammad stayed with his
foster-mother, Halimah bint Abi Dhuayb, and her husband until he was two years old. Some western scholars of Islam have rejected the historicity of this tradition.
] At the age of six, Muhammad lost his biological mother Amina to illness and he became fully orphaned.
[9] For the next two years, he was under the guardianship of his paternal grandfather
Abd al-Muttalib, of the Banu Hashim clan, but when Muhammad was eight, his grandfather also died. He then came under the care of his uncle
Abu Talib, the new leader of Banu Hashim.
[ According to William Montgomery Watt,
because of the general disregard of the guardians in taking care of
weak members of the tribes in Mecca in the 6th century, "Muhammad's
guardians saw that he did not starve to death, but it was hard for them
to do more for him, especially as the fortunes of the clan of Hashim
seem to have been declining at that time."
While still in his teens, Muhammad accompanied his uncle on trading journeys to
Syria gaining experience in commercial trade, the only career open to Muhammad as an orphan.
Islamic tradition states that when Muhammad was either nine or twelve
while accompanying the Meccans' caravan to Syria, he met a Christian
monk or hermit named
Bahira who is said to have foreseen Muhammed's career as a prophet of God.
Little is known of Muhammad during his later youth, and from the
fragmentary information that is available, it is difficult to separate
history from legend. It is known that he became a merchant and "was involved in trade between the Indian ocean and the Mediterranean Sea." Due to his upright character he acquired the nickname "al-Amin" (Arabic: الامين), meaning "faithful, trustworthy" and "al-Sadiq" meaning "truthful" and was sought out as an impartial arbitrator. His reputation attracted a proposal in 595 from Khadijah, a 40-year-old widow who was 15 years older than he. Muhammad consented to the marriage, which by all accounts was a happy one.
Several years later, according to a narration collected by Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad was involved with a well-known story about setting the Black Stone
in place in the wall of the Kaaba in 605 C.E. The Black Stone, a sacred
object, had been removed to facilitate renovations to the Kaaba. The
leaders of Mecca could not agree on which clan should have the honour of
setting the Black Stone back in its place. They agreed to wait for the
next man to come through the gate and ask him to choose. That man was
the 35-year-old Muhammad, five years before his first revelation. He
asked for a cloth and put the Black Stone in its centre. The clan
leaders held the corners of the cloth and together carried the Black
Stone to the right spot, then Muhammad set the stone in place,
satisfying the honour of all.
[58]
Beginnings of the Quran
Muhammad adopted the practice of meditating alone for several weeks every year in a cave on Mount Hira near Mecca. Islamic tradition holds that during one of his visits to Mount Hira, the angel
Gabriel appeared to him in the year 610 and commanded Muhammad to recite the following verses:
Proclaim! (or read!) in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher, Who created-
Created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood:
Proclaim! And thy Lord is Most Bountiful,-He Who taught (the use of) the pen,-Taught man that which he knew not.—Quran, sura 96 (Al-Alaq), ayat 1-5
After returning home, Muhammad was consoled and reassured by Khadijah and her Christian cousin, Waraqah ibn Nawfal. Upon receiving his first revelations, he was deeply distressed and resolved to commit
suicide. He also feared that others would dismiss his claims as being possessed.
[42]
Shi'a tradition maintains that Muhammad was neither surprised nor
frightened at the appearance of Gabriel but rather welcomed him as if he
had been expecting him.
[63] The initial revelation was followed by a pause of three years during which Muhammad further gave himself to prayers and spiritual practices.
When the revelations resumed he was reassured and commanded to begin
preaching: "Thy Guardian-Lord hath not forsaken thee, nor is He
displeased."
Sahih Bukhari narrates Muhammad describing the revelations as, "Sometimes it is (revealed) like the ringing of a bell" and
Aisha
reported, "I saw the Prophet being inspired Divinely on a very cold day
and noticed the sweat dropping from his forehead (as the Inspiration
was over)".
[67] According to
Welch these revelations were accompanied by mysterious seizures, and the reports are unlikely to have been forged by later Muslims.
[12] Muhammad was confident that he could distinguish his own thoughts from these messages.
[68] According to the Quran, one of the main roles of Muhammad is to warn the unbelievers of their eschatological punishment (Quran
38:70, Quran
6:19).
Sometimes the Quran does not explicitly refer to the Judgment day but
provides examples from the history of some extinct communities and warns
Muhammad's contemporaries of similar calamities (Quran
41:13–16).
[22]
Muhammad is not only a warner to those who reject God's revelation, but
also a bearer of good news for those who abandon evil, listen to the
divine word and serve God.
[69]
Muhammad's mission also involves preaching monotheism: The Quran
commands Muhammad to proclaim and praise the name of his Lord and
instructs him not to worship idols or associate other deities with God.
[14][22]
The key themes of the early Quranic verses included the
responsibility of man towards his creator; the resurrection of dead,
God's final judgment followed by vivid descriptions of the tortures in
hell and pleasures in Paradise; and the signs of God in all aspects of
life. Religious duties required of the believers at this time were few:
belief in God, asking for forgiveness of sins, offering frequent
prayers, assisting others particularly those in need, rejecting cheating
and the love of wealth (considered to be significant in the commercial
life of Mecca), being chaste and not to kill newborn girls.
[12]
Opposition
The last ayah from the sura An-Najm in the Quran: "So prostrate to Allah and worship [Him]." Muhammad's message of monotheism (one God) challenged the traditional order.
According to Muslim tradition, Muhammad's wife Khadija was the first to believe he was a prophet. She was soon followed by Muhammad's ten-year-old cousin
Ali ibn Abi Talib, close friend
Abu Bakr, and adopted son
Zaid. Around 613, Muhammad began his public preaching (Quran
26:214). Most Meccans ignored him and mocked him,
while a few others became his followers. There were three main groups
of early converts to Islam: younger brothers and sons of great
merchants; people who had fallen out of the first rank in their tribe or
failed to attain it; and the weak, mostly unprotected foreigners.
According to Ibn Sad, the opposition in Mecca started when Muhammad
delivered verses that condemned idol worship and the Meccan forefathers
who engaged in polytheism.
However, the Quranic exegesis maintains that it began as soon as Muhammad started public preaching.
As the number of followers increased, he became a threat to the local
tribes and the rulers of the city, whose wealth rested upon the Kaaba,
the focal point of Meccan religious life, which Muhammad threatened to
overthrow. Muhammad’s denunciation of the Meccan traditional religion
was especially offensive to his own tribe, the
Quraysh, as they were the guardians of the Ka'aba. The powerful merchants tried to convince Muhammad to abandon his
preaching by offering him admission into the inner circle of merchants,
and establishing his position therein by an advantageous marriage.
However, he refused.
Tradition records at great length the persecution and ill-treatment of Muhammad and his followers.
Sumayyah bint Khabbab, a slave of a prominent Meccan leader
Abu Jahl, is famous as the first martyr of Islam, having been killed with a spear by her master when she refused to give up her faith.
Bilal, another Muslim slave, was tortured by
Umayyah ibn Khalaf who placed a heavy rock on his chest to force his conversion. Apart from insults, Muhammad was protected from physical harm as he belonged to the Banu Hashim clan.
In 615, some of Muhammad's followers
emigrated to the
Ethiopian Aksumite Empire and founded a small colony there under the protection of the Christian Ethiopian emperor
Aṣḥama ibn Abjar.
Muhammad desperately hoping for an accommodation with his tribe,
either from fear or in the hope of succeeding more readily in this way,
pronounced a verse acknowledging the existence of three Meccan goddesses
considered to be the daughters of Allah, and appealing for their
intercession. Muhammad later retracted the verses at the behest of
Gabriel, claiming that the verses were whispered by the devil himself. This episode known as "The Story of the Cranes" (translation: قصة
الغرانيق, transliteration: Qissat al Gharaneeq) is also known as
"Satanic Verses". Some scholars argued against its historicity on
various grounds.
While this incident got widespread acceptance by early Muslims, strong
objections to it were raised starting from the tenth century, on
theological grounds. The objections continued to be raised to the point
where the rejection of the historicity of the incident eventually became
the only acceptable orthodox Muslim position.
In 617, the leaders of
Makhzum and
Banu Abd-Shams, two important Quraysh clans, declared a public
boycott against Banu Hashim,
their commercial rival, to pressure it into withdrawing its protection
of Muhammad. The boycott lasted three years but eventually collapsed as
it failed in its objective.
During this, Muhammad was only able to preach during the holy
pilgrimage months in which all hostilities between Arabs were suspended.
Isra and Mi'raj
The Al-Aqsa Mosque, part of the al-Haram ash-Sharif complex in
Jerusalem,
is believed to be the "farthest mosque" to which Muhammad travelled in
his night journey. The al-Haram ash-Sharif is the third holiest place on
earth for MuslimsIslamic tradition relates that in 620, Muhammad experienced the
Isra and Mi'raj, a miraculous journey said to have occurred with the angel
Gabriel in one night. In the first part of the journey, the
Isra, he is said to have travelled from
Mecca on a
winged steed (
Buraq) to "the farthest mosque" (in Arabic:
masjid al-aqsa), which Muslims usually identify with the
Al-Aqsa Mosque in
Jerusalem. In the second part, the
Mi'raj, Muhammad is said to have toured
heaven and
hell, and spoken with earlier prophets, such as
Abraham,
Moses, and
Jesus.
[84][86] Ibn Ishaq, author of the first
biography of Muhammad, presents this event as a spiritual experience whereas later historians like
Al-Tabari and
Ibn Kathir present it as a physical journey.
Quranic inscriptions on the
Dome of the Rock, adjacent to the
Al-Aqsa Mosque in the
al-Haram ash-Sharif. The Dome of the Rock marks the spot from which Muhammad is believed to have ascended to
heavenSome western scholars of Islam hold that the oldest Muslim tradition
identified the journey as one traveled through the heavens from the
sacred enclosure at Mecca to the celestial
al-Baytu l-Maʿmur (heavenly prototype of the Kaaba); but later tradition identified Muhammad's journey as having been from Mecca to Jerusalem.
Last years in Mecca before Hijra
Muhammad's wife Khadijah and his uncle Abu Talib both died in 619, the year thus being known as the "
year of sorrow".
With the death of Abu Talib, the leadership of the Banu Hashim clan was
passed to Abu Lahab, an inveterate enemy of Muhammad. Soon afterwards,
Abu Lahab
withdrew the clan's protection from Muhammad. This placed Muhammad in
danger of death since the withdrawal of clan protection implied that the
blood revenge for his killing would not be exacted. Muhammad then
visited Ta'if,
another important city in Arabia, and tried to find a protector for
himself there, but his effort failed and further brought him into
physical danger.
[12][83][84] Muhammad was forced to return to Mecca. A Meccan man named Mut'im b. Adi (and the protection of the tribe of
Banu Nawfal) made it possible for him safely to re-enter his native city.
Many people were visiting Mecca on business or as pilgrims to the
Kaaba.
Muhammad took this opportunity to look for a new home for himself and
his followers. After several unsuccessful negotiations, he found hope
with some men from Yathrib (later called
Medina).
The Arab population of Yathrib were familiar with monotheism and
prepared for the appearance of a prophet because a Jewish community
existed there.
[12][15]
They also hoped by the means of Muhammad and the new faith to gain
supremacy over Mecca, as they were jealous of its importance as the
place of pilgrimage.
Converts to Islam came from nearly all
Arab
tribes in Medina, such that by June of the subsequent year there were
seventy-five Muslims coming to Mecca for pilgrimage and to meet
Muhammad. Meeting him secretly by night, the group made what was known
as the "
Second Pledge of al-`Aqaba", or the "
Pledge of War"
Following the pledges at Aqabah, Muhammad encouraged his followers to
emigrate to
Yathrib. As with the
migration to Abyssinia, the Quraysh attempted to stop the emigration. However, almost all Muslims managed to leave.
Hijra
The Hijra is the migration of Muhammad and his followers from Mecca
to Medina in 622 CE. In September 622, warned of a plot to assassinate
him, Muhammad secretly slipped out of Mecca, moving with his followers
to Medina, 320 kilometres (200 mi) north of Mecca. The Hijra is celebrated annually on the first day of the Muslim year.
Migration to Medina
A delegation consisting of the representatives of the twelve
important clans of Medina, invited Muhammad as a neutral outsider to
Medina to serve as chief arbitrator for the entire community.
There was fighting in Yathrib mainly involving its Arab and Jewish inhabitants for around a hundred years before 620. The recurring slaughters and disagreements over the resulting claims, especially after the
Battle of Bu'ath in which all clans were involved, made it obvious to them that the tribal conceptions of blood-feud and
an eye for an eye were no longer workable unless there was one man with authority to adjudicate in disputed cases. The delegation from Medina pledged themselves and their fellow-citizens
to accept Muhammad into their community and physically protect him as
one of themselves.
Muhammad instructed his followers to emigrate to Medina until
virtually all his followers left Mecca. Being alarmed at the departure
of Muslims, according to the tradition, the Meccans plotted to
assassinate Muhammad. With the help of
Ali, Muhammad fooled the Meccans who were watching him, and secretly slipped away from the town with Abu Bakr. By 622, Muhammad emigrated to
Medina, a large agricultural
oasis. Those who migrated from Mecca along with Muhammad became known as
muhajirun (emigrants).
God!
There is no god but He,
the Living, the Everlasting.
Slumber seizes Him not, neither sleep;
to Him belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth.
Who is there that shall intercede with Him save by His leave?
He knows what lies before them and what is after them,
and they comprehend not anything of His knowledge
save such as He wills.
His Throne comprises the heavens and earth;
the preserving of them oppresses Him not;
He is the All-high, the All-glorious.
Among the first things Muhammad did to settle down the longstanding
grievances among the tribes of Medina was drafting a document known as
the
Constitution of Medina,
"establishing a kind of alliance or federation" among the eight Medinan
tribes and Muslim emigrants from Mecca, which specified the rights and
duties of all citizens and the relationship of the different communities
in Medina (including that of the Muslim community to other communities,
specifically the
Jews and other "
Peoples of the Book").The community defined in the Constitution of Medina,
Ummah,
had a religious outlook but was also shaped by practical considerations
and substantially preserved the legal forms of the old Arab tribes.It effectively established the first Islamic state.
Several ordinances were proclaimed to win over the numerous and
wealthy Jewish population. But these were soon rescinded as the Jews
insisted on preserving the entire Mosaic law, and did not recognize him
as a prophet because he was not of the race of David.
The first group of pagan converts to Islam in Medina were the clans
who had not produced great leaders for themselves but had suffered from
warlike leaders from other clans. This was followed by the general
acceptance of Islam by the pagan population of Medina, apart from some
exceptions. According to Ibn Ishaq, this was influenced by the
conversion of
Sa'd ibn Mu'adh (a prominent Medinan leader) to Islam.Those Medinans who converted to Islam and helped the Muslim emigrants find shelter became known as the
ansar (supporters).
Then Muhammad instituted
brotherhood between the emigrants and the supporters and he chose
Ali as his own brother.
[96]
Beginning of armed conflict
Following the emigration, the Meccans seized the properties of the Muslim emigrants in Mecca.
[97]
Economically uprooted and with no available profession, the Muslim
migrants turned to raiding Meccan caravans, initiating armed conflict
with Mecca.
[98][99][100] Muhammad delivered
Quranic verses permitting the Muslims to fight the Meccans (see sura
Al-Hajj, Quran
22:39–40).
These attacks allowed the migrants to acquire wealth, power and
prestige while working towards their ultimate goal of conquering Mecca.
The
Masjid al-Qiblatain, where Muhammad established the new
Qibla, or direction of prayer. On 11 February 624 according to the traditional account, while praying in the
Masjid al-Qiblatain
in Medina, Muhammad received a revelation from God that he should be
facing Mecca rather than Jerusalem during prayer. As he adjusted
himself, so did his companions praying with him, beginning the tradition
of facing Mecca during prayer. According to Watt, the change may have been less sudden and definite than the story suggests – the related Quranic verses (
2:136–
2:147)
appear to have been revealed at different times – and correlates with
changes in Muhammad's political support base, symbolizing his turning
away from Jews and adopting a more Arabian outlook.
[104]
In March 624, Muhammad led some three hundred warriors in a raid on a
Meccan merchant caravan. The Muslims set an ambush for them at Badr.
[105] Aware of the plan, the Meccan caravan eluded the Muslims.
[100]
Meanwhile, a force from Mecca was sent to protect the caravan,
continuing forward to confront the Muslims upon hearing that the caravan
was safe. The Battle of Badr began in March 624.
[106]
Though outnumbered more than three to one, the Muslims won the battle,
killing at least forty-five Meccans with only fourteen Muslims dead.
They also succeeded in killing many Meccan leaders, including
Abu Jahl.
[107] Seventy prisoners had been acquired, many of whom were soon ransomed in return for wealth or freed.
[98][100][108][109] Muhammad and his followers saw in the victory a confirmation of their faith
[12] as Muhammad ascribed the victory to the assistance of an invisible host of angels.
[110]
The Quranic verses of this period, unlike the Meccan ones, dealt with
practical problems of government and issues like the distribution of
spoils.
[111][112]
The victory strengthened Muhammad's position in Medina and dispelled
earlier doubts among his followers. As a result the opposition to him
became less vocal. Pagans who had not yet converted were very bitter
about the advance of Islam. Two pagans,
Asma bint Marwan and
Abu 'Afak,
had composed verses taunting and insulting the Muslims. They were
killed by people belonging to their own or related clans, and no
blood-feud followed.
[113]
Muhammad expelled from Medina the
Banu Qaynuqa, one of three main Jewish tribes.
[12] Although Muhammad wanted them executed,
Abd-Allah ibn Ubaiy chief of the
Khazraj tribe did not agree and they were expelled to Syria but without their property.
[112]
Following the Battle of Badr, Muhammad also made mutual-aid alliances
with a number of Bedouin tribes to protect his community from attacks
from the northern part of
Hijaz.
[12]
Conflict with Mecca
The
Kaaba in
Mecca
long held a major economic and religious role for the area. Seventeen
months after Muhammad's arrival in Medina, it became the Muslim
Qibla, or direction for prayer (
Salah).
The Kaaba has been rebuilt several times; the present structure, built
in 1629, is a reconstruction of an earlier building dating to 683.
The Meccans were now anxious to avenge their defeat. To maintain
their economic prosperity, the Meccans needed to restore their prestige,
which had been lost at Badr.
[115]
In the ensuing months, the Meccans sent ambush parties on Medina while
Muhammad led expeditions on tribes allied with Mecca and sent out a raid
on a Meccan caravan.
Abu Sufyan subsequently gathered an army of three thousand men and set out for an attack on Medina.
A scout alerted Muhammad of the Meccan army's presence and numbers a
day later. The next morning, at the Muslim conference of war, there was
dispute over how best to repel the Meccans. Muhammad and many senior
figures suggested that it would be safer to fight within Medina and take
advantage of its heavily fortified strongholds. Younger Muslims argued
that the Meccans were destroying their crops, and that huddling in the
strongholds would destroy Muslim prestige. Muhammad eventually conceded
to the wishes of the latter, and readied the Muslim force for battle. Thus, Muhammad led his force outside to the mountain of Uhud (where the Meccans had camped) and fought the
Battle of Uhud on March 23.
Although the Muslim army had the best of the early encounters,
indiscipline on the part of strategically placed archers led to a Muslim
defeat, with 75 Muslims killed including
Hamza, Muhammad's uncle and one of the best known
martyrs in the Muslim tradition.
The Meccans did not pursue the Muslims further, but marched back to
Mecca declaring victory. This is probably because Muhammad was wounded
and thought to be dead. When they knew this on their way back, they did
not return back because of false information about new forces coming to
his aid. They were not entirely successful, however, as they had failed to achieve their aim of completely destroying the Muslims.
The Muslims buried the dead, and returned to Medina that evening.
Questions accumulated as to the reasons for the loss, and Muhammad
subsequently delivered Quranic verses
3:152 which indicated that their defeat was partly a punishment for disobedience and partly a test for steadfastness.
Abu Sufyan now directed his efforts towards another attack on Medina.
He attracted the support of nomadic tribes to the north and east of
Medina, using propaganda about Muhammad's weakness, promises of booty,
memories of the prestige of the Quraysh and use of bribes.
[123]
Muhammad's policy was now to prevent alliances against him as much as
he could. Whenever alliances of tribesmen against Medina were formed, he
sent out an expedition to break them up.
[123] When Muhammad heard of men massing with hostile intentions against Medina, he reacted with severity.
[124] One example is the assassination of
Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf, a chieftain of the Jewish tribe of
Banu Nadir
who had gone to Mecca and written poems that helped rouse the Meccans'
grief, anger and desire for revenge after the Battle of Badr.
[125][126] Around a year later, Muhammad expelled the Banu Nadir from Medina
[127]
to Syria allowing them to take some of their possessions because he was
unable to subdue them in their strongholds. The rest of their property
was claimed by Muhammad in the name of God because it was not gained
with bloodshed. Muhammad surprised various Arab tribes, one by one, with
overwhelming force which caused his enemies to unite to annihilate him.
[128]
Muhammad's attempts to prevent formation of a confederation against him
were unsuccessful, though he was able to increase his own forces and
stop many potential tribes from joining his enemies.
[129]
Siege of Medina
Allah is the Light
of the heavens and the earth.
The Parable of His Light is
as if there were a Niche
and within it a Lamp:
the Lamp enclosed in Glass:
the glass as it were a brilliant star:
Lit from a blessed Tree, an Olive,
neither of the east nor of the west,
whose oil is well-nigh luminous,
though fire scarce touched it:
Light upon Light!
Allah doth guide whom He will to His Light:
Allah doth set forth Parables for men:
and Allah doth know all things.
—The famous "Light Verse", part of the sura
An-Nur,
24:35
With the help of the exiled
Banu Nadir, the Quraysh military leader
Abu Sufyan
had mustered a force of 10,000 men. Muhammad prepared a force of about
3000 men and adopted a new form of defense unknown in Arabia at that
time: the Muslims dug a trench
[128] wherever Medina lay open to cavalry attack. The idea is credited to a Persian convert to Islam,
Salman the Persian. The siege of Medina began on March 31 627
[128] and lasted for two weeks.
[130]
Abu Sufyan's troops were unprepared for the fortifications they were
confronted with, and after an ineffectual siege lasting several weeks,
the coalition decided to go home.
[128][131] The Quran discusses this battle in sura Al-Ahzab, ayat (verses) 9-27,
33:9–27.
[74] During the battle, the Jewish tribe of
Banu Qurayza,
located at the south of Medina, had entered into negotiations with
Meccan forces to revolt against Muhammad. Although they were swayed by
suggestions that Muhammad was sure to be overwhelmed, they desired
reassurance in case the confederacy was unable to destroy him. No
agreement was reached after the prolonged negotiations, in part due to
sabotage attempts by Muhammad's scouts.
[132]
After the coalition's retreat, the Muslims accused the Banu Qurayza of
treachery and besieged them in their forts for 25 days. The Banu Qurayza
eventually surrendered; according to
Ibn Ishaq, all the men apart from a few who converted to Islam were beheaded, while the women and children were enslaved.
[128][133][134] Walid N. Arafat and
Barakat Ahmad have disputed the accuracy of Ibn Ishaq"s narrative, however.
[135]
Arafat believes that Ibn Ishaq's Jewish sources, speaking over 100
years after the event, conflated their account with memories of earlier
massacres in Jewish history; he notes that Ibn Ishaq was considered an
unreliable historian by his contemporary
Malik ibn Anas, and a transmitter of "odd tales" by the later
Ibn Hajar.
[136] Ahmad argues that only some of the tribe were killed, while some of the fighters were merely enslaved.
[137][138] Watt finds Arafat's arguments "not entirely convincing", while Meir J. Kister has contradicted
[clarification needed] the arguments of Arafat and Ahmad.
[139]
In the siege of Medina, the Meccans exerted their utmost strength
towards the destruction of the Muslim community. Their failure resulted
in a significant loss of prestige; their trade with Syria was gone.
[140] Following the Battle of the Trench, he made two expeditions to the north which ended without any fighting.
[12][128] While returning from one of these (or some years earlier according to other early accounts), an
accusation of adultery was made against
Aisha,
Muhammad's wife. Aisha was exonerated from the accusations when
Muhammad announced that he had received a revelation confirming Aisha's
innocence and directing that charges of adultery be supported by four
eyewitnesses (sura 24,
An-Nur).
[141]
Truce of Hudaybiyyah
Although Muhammad had already delivered Quranic verses commanding the
Hajj,
[142] the Muslims had not performed it due to the enmity of the Quraysh. In the month of
Shawwal 628,
[128] Muhammad ordered his followers to obtain sacrificial animals and to make preparations for a pilgrimage (
umrah)
to Mecca, saying that God had promised him the fulfillment of this goal
in a vision where he was shaving his head after the completion of the
Hajj.
[143]
Upon hearing of the approaching 1,400 Muslims, the Quraysh sent out a
force of 200 cavalry to halt them. Muhammad evaded them by taking a more
difficult route, thereby reaching al-Hudaybiyya, just outside of Mecca.
[144]
According to Watt, although Muhammad's decision to make the pilgrimage
was based on his dream, he was at the same time demonstrating to the
pagan Meccans that Islam does not threaten the prestige of their
sanctuary, and that Islam was an Arabian religion.
Imprint of Muhammad's seal, used in letters sent to other heads of state.
Negotiations commenced with emissaries going to and from Mecca. While
these continued, rumors spread that one of the Muslim negotiators,
Uthman bin al-Affan,
had been killed by the Quraysh. Muhammad responded by calling upon the
pilgrims to make a pledge not to flee (or to stick with Muhammad,
whatever decision he made) if the situation descended into war with
Mecca. This pledge became known as the "Pledge of Acceptance" (
Arabic:
بيعة الرضوان , bay'at al-ridhwān) or the "
Pledge under the Tree".
News of Uthman's safety, however, allowed for negotiations to continue,
and a treaty scheduled to last ten years was eventually signed between
the Muslims and Quraysh.
[144][145]
The main points of the treaty included the cessation of hostilities;
the deferral of Muhammad's pilgrimage to the following year;
[146] and an agreement to send back any Meccan who had gone to Medina without the permission of their protector.
[144]
Many Muslims were not satisfied with the terms of the treaty. However, the Quranic sura "
Al-Fath" (The Victory) (Quran
48:1–29) assured the Muslims that the expedition from which they were now returning must be considered a victorious one.
[147]
It was only later that Muhammad's followers would realise the benefit
behind this treaty. These benefits included the inducing of the Meccans
to recognise Muhammad as an equal;
[146]
a cessation of military activity posing well for the future; and
gaining the admiration of Meccans who were impressed by the
incorporation of the pilgrimage rituals.
[12]
After signing the truce, Muhammad made an expedition against the Jewish oasis of
Khaybar,
[146] known as the
Battle of Khaybar.
This was possibly due to it housing the Banu Nadir, who were inciting
hostilities against Muhammad, or to regain some prestige to deflect from
what appeared to some Muslims as the inconclusive result of the truce
of Hudaybiyya.
[117][148] According to Muslim tradition, Muhammad also
sent letters to many rulers of the world, asking them to convert to Islam (the exact date is given variously in the sources).
[12][149][150][151] Hence he sent messengers (with letters) to
Heraclius of the
Byzantine Empire (the eastern Roman Empire),
Khosrau of
Persia, the chief of
Yemen and to some others.
[149][150][151] In the years following the truce of Hudaybiyya, Muhammad sent his forces against the Arabs on
Transjordanian Byzantine soil in the
Battle of Mu'tah, in which the Muslims were defeated.
[151][152]
Final years
Conquest of Mecca
A depiction of Muhammad (with veiled face) advancing on Mecca from Siyer-i Nebi, a 16th-century Ottoman manuscript. The angels Gabriel, Michael, Israfil and Azrail, are also shown.
The
truce of Hudaybiyyah had been enforced for two years.
[153][154] The tribe of
Banu Khuza'a had good relations with Muhammad, whereas their enemies, the
Banu Bakr, had an alliance with the Meccans.
[153][154] A clan of the Bakr made a night raid against the Khuza'a, killing a few of them.
[153][154] The Meccans helped the Banu Bakr with weapons and, according to some sources, a few Meccans also took part in the fighting.
[151][153]
After this event, Muhammad sent a message to Mecca with three
conditions, asking them to accept one of them. These were that either
the Meccans paid
blood money
for those slain among the Khuza'ah tribe; or, that they should disavow
themselves of the Banu Bakr; or, that they should declare the truce of
Hudaybiyyah null.
[155]
The Meccans replied that they would accept only the last condition.
[155] However, soon they realized their mistake and sent
Abu Sufyan to renew the Hudaybiyyah treaty, but now his request was declined by Muhammad.
Muhammad began to prepare for a campaign.
In 630, Muhammad marched on Mecca with an enormous force, said to
number more than ten thousand men. With minimal casualties, Muhammad
took control of Mecca.
He declared an amnesty for past offences, except for ten men and women
who had mocked and ridiculed him in songs and verses. Some of these were
later pardoned.
Most Meccans converted to Islam and Muhammad subsequently had destroyed
all the statues of Arabian gods in and around the Kaaba. According to reports collected by
Ibn Ishaq and
al-Azraqi, Muhammad personally spared paintings or frescos of
Mary and
Jesus, but other traditions suggest that all pictures were erased. The Quran discusses the conquest of Mecca.
Conquest of Arabia
Soon after the conquest of Mecca, Muhammad was alarmed by a military
threat from the confederate tribes of Hawazin who were collecting an
army twice the size of Muhammad's. The
Banu Hawazin were old enemies of the Meccans. They were joined by the
Banu Thaqif (inhabiting the city of Ta'if) who adopted an anti-Meccan policy due to the decline of the prestige of Meccans.
[164] Muhammad defeated the Hawazin and Thaqif tribes in the Battle of Hunayn.
[12][165]
In the same year, Muhammad made the expedition of Tabuk against northern Arabia because of their previous defeat at the
Battle of Mu'tah
as well as reports of the hostile attitude adopted against Muslims.
With the greatest difficulty he collected thirty thousand men, half of
whom, however, on the second day after their departure from Mecca,
returned with
Abd-Allah ibn Ubayy, untroubled by the damning verses which Muhammad hurled at them.
[166]
Although Muhammad did not make contact with hostile forces at Tabuk, he
received the submission of some local chiefs of the region.
[12][167]
A year after the Battle of Tabuk, the Banu Thaqif sent emissaries to
Medina
to surrender to Muhammad and adopt Islam. Many bedouins submitted to
Muhammad to be safe against his attacks and to benefit from the booties
of the wars.
[12][166]
However, the bedouins were alien to the system of Islam and wanted to
maintain their independence, their established code of virtue and their
ancestral traditions. Muhammad thus required of them a military and
political agreement according to which they "acknowledge the suzerainty
of Medina, to refrain from attack on the Muslims and their allies, and
to pay the
Zakat, the Muslim religious levy."
Farewell pilgrimage
In 632, at the end of the tenth year after the migration to Medina,
Muhammad carried through his first truly Islamic pilgrimage, thereby
teaching his followers the rites of the annual Great Pilgrimage (Hajj).
[12] After completing the pilgrimage, Muhammad delivered a famous speech known as
The Farewell Sermon, at
Mount Arafat
east of Mecca. In this sermon, Muhammad advised his followers not to
follow certain pre-Islamic customs. He declared that an Arab has no
superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an
Arab; also a white has no superiority over black nor a black has any
superiority over white except by piety and good action.
He abolished all old
blood feuds and disputes based on the former
tribal
system and asked for all old pledges to be returned as implications of
the creation of the new Islamic community. Commenting on the
vulnerability of women in his society, Muhammed asked his male followers
to “Be good to women; for they are powerless captives (
awan) in your households. You took them in God’s trust, and
legitimated your sexual relations
with the Word of God, so come to your senses people, and hear my words
...” He told them that they were entitled to discipline their wives but
should do so with kindness. He addressed the issue of inheritance by
forbidding false claims of paternity or of a client relationship to the
deceased, and forbade his followers to leave their wealth to a
testamentary heir. He also upheld the sacredness of four lunar months in
each year.
According to
Sunni tafsir,
the following Quranic verse was delivered during this event: “Today I
have perfected your religion, and completed my favours for you and
chosen Islam as a religion for you.”(Quran 5:3)
According to
Shia tafsir, it refers to the appointment of
Ali ibn Abi Talib at the
pond of Khumm as
Muhammad's successor, this occurring a few days later when Muslims were returning from Mecca to Medina.
[174]
Death and tomb
A few months after the farewell pilgrimage, Muhammad fell ill and
suffered for several days with a fever, head pain, and weakness.
He died on Monday, June 8, 632, in Medina, at the age of 63, in the house of his wife Aisha.
With his head resting on Aisha's lap he murmured his final words soon
after asking her to dispose of his last worldly goods, which were seven
coins:
Rather, God on High and paradise.
—Muhammad
He was buried where he died, in Aisha's house.During the reign of the Umayyad caliph
al-Walid I, the
Al-Masjid al-Nabawi (the Mosque of the Prophet) was expanded to include the site of
Muhammad's tomb.[179] The
Green Dome above the tomb was built by the
Mamluk sultan
Al Mansur Qalawun in the 13th century, although the green color was addded in the 16th century, under the reign of
Ottoman sultan
Suleiman the Magnificent.
[180] When
bin Saud took Medina in 1805, Muhammad's tomb was stripped of its gold and jewel ornaments.
[181] Adherents to
Wahhabism, bin Sauds' followers destroyed nearly every tomb dome in Medina in order to prevent their veneration,
[181] and the one of Muhammad is said to have narrowly escaped.
[182] Similar events took place in 1925 when the
Saudi militias retook—and this time managed to keep—the city In the Wahhabi interpretation of Islam, burial is to take place in unmarked graves.
[182] Although frowned upon by the Saudis, many pilgrims continue to practice a
ziyarat—a ritual visit—to the tomb.
Among tombs adjacent to Muhammad's are those of his companions (
Sahabah)—the first two Muslim Caliphs
Abu Bakr and
Umar—, and an empty one that
Muslims believe awaits Jesus.
]
(Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prophet_Mohammad)
/ˈhædɪθ/[1] or /hɑːˈdiːθ/[2]) (plural: hadith, hadiths, or aḥādīth) is used to denote a saying or an act or tacit approval or criticism ascribed either validly or invalidly to the Islamic prophet Muhammad.[3]
