Biography of Allah’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ in 29 Nights with Podcasts (25-30)

 

25.                        Ḥunayn (10 Shawwāl 8 Hijrī)

• After the submission of the Quraysh the Hawāzin led the Polytheists against Islām and were joined in war by Thaqīf (Tāʾif), Saʾd bin Bakr (tribe amongst whom Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   had spent his childhood), etc.


• They brought everything – cattle, women and children – to stake everything in the ultimate battle, to fight to the last.


• Muslims were 10,000 from Madīnah. 2,000 from Makkah accompanying them were not yet all Muslim. Muslims felt confident due to their numbers.


• Upon reaching Ḥunayn the Hawāzin attacked with rain of arrows and then charged. The Muslims seemed defeated and rumour spread that Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   was martyred.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   held firm on his white mule, surrounded by few Muhājirūn and Anṣā ʿAbbās رضي الله عنه  held the mule’s bridle and called out to the Muslims. They rallied and defeated the enemy. The lesson was reliance on Allāh, not numbers or material advantage.


• A woman of Saʾd bin Bakr makes a commotion claiming to be the sister of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  . She is brought before and when he asks for proof she says, “I still have the marks of the bite that you bit me on my back,” i.e. when they were both children.


• The New Muslims were treated generously from the spoils and youngsters amongst the Anṣār complained. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   scolded them. “Did I not find you astray and through me Allāḥ guided you. You were poor and through me Allāh made you rich. You were divided and through me Allāh united you. ” But amazingly praised them at the time when one does not think to praise subordinates, “But you could have said… you were discredited and we believed you, abandoned and we helped you, expelled and we sheltered you, poor and we gave you resources.”

https://youtu.be/-h8Z8oR0g2g

26.                        Tabūk (Rajab 9 Hijrī)

• Major distance, intense heat to attack to attack the Romans. The hypocrites used various excuses to fall back. It was so difficult physically and psychologically that Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   openly announced the destination unlike other battles.


• ʿUthmān رضي الله عنه donated 1000 dīnār, ʿUmar رضي الله عنه  over half his wealth, Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه   gave everything. ʿAlī رضي الله عنه  left behind as deputy.


• Passed the old lands of Thamūd in haste and forbade the use of its water. Today we make tourist sites of lands of punishment and use Dead Sea products.


• Various towns surrendered and the Romans retreated, so Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   headed back to Madīnah. Pagans of Arabia were now finally convinced that Islām’s victory was permanent.


• On the way back Zayd bin ʾArqam رضي الله عنه overheard Ibn Salūl say, “When we return to Madīnah, the noble ones will evict the despicable one from her.” Zayd was a boy so some of the Anṣār were hesitant about taking his word over a chief’s, but Allāh sent revelation, confirming his testimony.

https://youtu.be/QD3nYR9Eyaw

27.                        Arabia Submits

• Quraysh, Hawāzin and Rome had all been humbled and most were now convinced.


• The tribes now started flocking into Allāh’s Dīn. And 9 Hijrī is known as the year of Delegations. Some came before Tabūk, most needed convincing with Tabūk.


• Banū Tamīm first challenged the Muslims to a poetry contest and submitted when defeated in the contest. Lesson – arm yourself with the means of the time.


• ʿAbdul Qays, were the first of the east tribes to accept Islām in 5 Hijrī. Asajj was told he has two qualities Allāh loves, “Forbearance and deliberation before acting.” Consider how technology has destroyed this in us, we must press the reply and broadcast button immediately. They now sent a second delegation. They were forbidden glazed jars, used for wine. Lesson – what reminds and tempts to Ḥarām is to be avoided.


• Saʾd bin Bakr sent Damām bin Thaʿlabah رضي الله عنه . He spoke very roughly in the Bedouin manner to Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   . He embraced Islām, returned and converted the entire tribe in one day. Lesson – Allāh chooses who He wills. People of different types can all serve Islām.


• “The people of Yemen have come to you. They have sensitive minds and the softest of hearts. Imān is Yemeni. Wisdom is Yemeni.” Gentle manners is inextricable linked to Imān.


• Christians of Najrān sent a delegation. They accepted Islāmic rule but not Islām. Tolerance for other religions is part of Sharīʿah.


• Kindah and Ḥanīfah who had rejected Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   all those years back, now submitted. Although Banū Ḥanīfah turned away under a false prophet. Musaylamah the Liar.


• Wāʾil bin Ḥujr رضي الله عنه , prince of Yemen. Embraced Islām and in his newness treated the secretary of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   , the 18 year old Muʿāwiyah رضي الله عنه   Made him walk bare feet all the way to Yemen. Yet Muʿāwiyah رضي الله عنه  assisted him when he came to power.

https://youtu.be/epO4csmGQ4M

28.                        Signs of Impending Departure & Farewell

• Sūrah Naṣr. Everyone rejoiced at its revelation. Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه however wept uncontrollably in sorrow. He alone understood that this was in fact the funeral announcement of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   .


• “O Muʿāẓ, it may be that you will not meet me after this year of mine. Perhaps you will pass by this Masjid of mine and my grave.”


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   did not perform Ḥajj in 8 or 9 Hijrī despite being the ruler of Makkah. He sent Abū Bakr as his deputy as the Imām of Ḥajj. Annual Ḥajj is not Sunnah. He performed one recorded Ḥajj. Certainly only one in last 23 years of his life.


• Every Ramaḍān Jibrīl used to revise what Qurʾān had been revealed thus far. In the Ramaḍan of 10 Hijrī he made Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   recite twice instead of the usual once. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    understood that his time was near. He would not witness another earthly Ramaḍān or Ḥajj season.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   anounced his intention for Ḥajj and set on Saturday 25^th Ẓul Qaʿdah 10 Hijrī.


• Eventually more than 100,000 joined.


• Reached Makkah 4^th Ẓil Ḥijjah. Immediately kissed Ḥajar and performed Ṭawā


• Two Farewell Sermons. Sanctity of property. Blood vengeance of pre-Islām abolished. Usury abolished. “Fear Allāh in regards women…you are responsible for providing for them..” Hold on to the Qurʿān to avoid going astray. “Time has completed the cycle to reach the same point when Allāh created the heavens and earth.”


• Yet the opening and closing statements were indications of bidding farewell. “O people hear my words, for I do not know if I shall meet you again after this year and in this place again.”


• “Have I delivered the message? Have I delivered the message?”


• Whilst pelting Jamarāt, Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   stopped and said, “Learn your rites. For I do not know whether I am likely to perform the Ḥajj after this occasion.”

https://youtu.be/hbTu6mxuKOI

29.                        To the Companion Most High

• After returning from Ḥajj, Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   went to Uhud. He prayed for the martyrs in the manner of one bidding farewell.


• Late one night in Ṣafar 11 Hijrī Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   went to pray for the deceased in Baqīʿ. The next morning his ailment began.


• ʿĀʾishah, “O my head!” “No, O ʿĀʾishah, O my head.”


• At house of Maymūnah, asked wives permission to be nursed at one house, ʿĀʾishah’s.


• Faḍl bin ʿAbbās رضي الله عنه and ʿAlī رضي الله عنه  had to support him. He walked feet dragging, cloth tied to the head due to the pain.


• Summoned ʾUsāmah رضي الله عنه commanding him to march to Syria. Army left after his passing.


• Only money left was 9 Dirham. “How shall I face Allāh with these in my possession?” and gave them away. (ZAR 213.84)


• Kept falling unconscious, so appointed Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه as Imām, except for few prayers when he felt better.


• Last prayer he led was Maghrib, recited wal-Mursalā


• All doors attached to the Majid shut except for that of Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه .


• Last sermon, “I advise you in regards the Anṣār. They are my friends and as if part of my own liver. They have fulfilled their obligations and nothing remains now for them except reward. Accept their good and overlook their wrong.”


• Last night Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   spent on earth there was no oil to light his lamp. ʿĀʾishah had to borrow oil from others.


• Last public appearance. Monday during Fajr Ṣalāh, “Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    lifted the curtain and kept his eyes fixed on us …. He smiled and then laughed…. And that was the day on which he died.”


• Last command later that day, “[Guard your] Ṣalāh. [Care for] those whom your right hands possess. Expel the Jews and Christians from the Arabian Peninsula.”


• Saw Miswāk in ʾAbdurraḥmān bin Abī Bakr’s رضي الله عنه ʿĀʾishah softened it and gave it to him. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    cleaned his teeth and dropped it out of weakness.


• With his head in our Mother’s lap, saying his last words, “Allāhumma ar-Rafīq al-ʾAʿlā” Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   left to the Companion Most High.

https://youtu.be/Lcx0hj0PBRA

30.                        Description in Tirmiẓi, if Allāh wills 30 nights

عن  أنس قال خدمت النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم عشر سنين فما قال لي أف قط وما قال لشيء صنعته لم صنعته ولا لشيء تركته لم تركته وكان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم من أحسن الناس خلقا ولا مسست خزا قط ولا حريرا ولا شيئا كان ألين من كف رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ولا شممت مسكا قط ولا عطرا كان أطيب من عرق رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم

• Anas رضي الله عنه narrated, “I served the Prophet صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    for ten years. He never uttered the slightest sound of displeasure and never said for anything I did, ‘Why did you do that,’ Nor for something that I left, ‘Why did you leave that?’ Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    was amongst the most beautiful of people in his appearance. I have never touched brocade or even silk or anything for that matter which is softer than the palm of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   . I have never smelt musk or any other perfume more fragrant than the perspiration of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   .


• : كَانَ عَلِيٌّ إِذَا وَصَفَ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  ، قَالَ : ” لَمْ يَكُنْ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   بِالطَّوِيلِ الْمُمَّغِطِ ، وَلا بِالْقَصِيرِ الْمُتَرَدِّدِ ، وَكَانَ رَبْعَةً مِنَ الْقَوْمِ ، لَمْ يَكُنْ بِالْجَعْدِ الْقَطَطِ ، وَلا بِالسَّبْطِ ، كَانَ جَعْدًا رَجِلا ، وَلَمْ يَكُنْ بِالْمُطَهَّمِ , وَلا بِالْمُكَلْثَمِ ، وَكَانَ فِي وَجْهِهِ تَدْوِيرٌ , أَبْيَضُ مُشَرَبٌ ، أَدْعَجُ الْعَيْنَيْنِ ، أَهْدَبُ الأَشْفَارِ ، جَلِيلُ الْمُشَاشِ وَالْكَتَدِ ، أَجْرَدُ , ذُو مَسْرُبَةٍ ، شَثْنُ الْكَفَّيْنِ وَالْقَدَمَيْنِ ، إِذَا مَشَى تَقَلَّعَ كَأَنَّمَا يَنْحَطُّ فِي صَبَبٍ ، وَإِذَا الْتَفَتَ الْتَفَتَ مَعًا ، بَيْنَ كَتِفَيْهِ خَاتَمُ النُّبُوَّةِ ، وَهُوَ خَاتَمُ النَّبِيِّينَ ، أَجْوَدُ النَّاسِ صَدْرًا ، وَأَصْدَقُ النَّاسِ لَهْجَةً ، وَأَلْيَنُهُمْ عَرِيكَةً ، وَأَكْرَمُهُمْ عِشْرَةً ، مَنْ رَآهُ بَدِيهَةً هَابَهُ ، وَمَنْ خَالَطَهُ مَعْرِفَةً أَحَبَّهُ ، يَقُولُ نَاعِتُهُ : لَمْ أَرَ قَبْلَهُ , وَلا بَعْدَهُ مِثْلَهُ صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ


• Whenever Ali radiallahu anhu described the nobel features of Rasulullah (Sallallahu alaihe wasallam), he used to say: “Rasulullah (Sallallahu alaihe wasallam) was neither very tall nor short, but of a medium stature among people.  His hair was neither very curly nor very straight, but had a slight wave in it.  He did not have a big body nor a round face, but his face was slightly round (meaning he did not have a fully round face nor a fully elongated face, bur in between the two).  The complexion of Rasulullah (Sallallahu alaihe wasallam) was white with redness in it.  The eyes of Rasulullah (Sallallahu alaihe wasallam) were extremely black.  His eyelashes were long.  The joints of the body (e.g. elbows and knees etc.) were large, likewise the portion between the two shoulders was broad and fully fleshed.  There was no hair (more than normal) on his body. He had a thin line of hair running from the chest to the navel.  The hands and feet of Rasulullah (Sallallahu alaihe wasallam) were fully fleshed.  When he walked, he lifted his legs with vigour, as if he were descending to a low-lying place.  When he addressed a person he turned his whole body towards that person. The seal of Prophethood was situated between his shoulders.  He was a last of all prophets.  He was the most generous and the most truthful.  He was the most kind-hearted and came from a most noble family.   Any person who saw him suddenly would become struck with awe. Anyone who came in close contact with him, and knew his excellent character would love him.  Anyone who described him can only say: “I have not never seen anyone before or after like him صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  . ” [Shamāʿil lit-Tirmiẓi. Translation adapted from Mawlānā Yūsuf Karān]

 

https://youtu.be/jRxlGN6xklc

و صلى الله على راكب البراق كامل الأخلاق

Biography of Allah’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ in 29 Nights with Podcasts (20-24)

 

20.                        Uḥud (3 Shawwāl 3 Hijrī)

• After Badr hypocrites arose under ʿAbdullāh bin Ubayy ibn Salūl.


• Kaʿb bin Ashraf the Jew incited the Quraysh to avenge Badr.


• The Quraysh army arrived 3000 strong, accompanied by women such as Hind, wife of Abū Sufyān (may Allāh be pleased with them). She later much regretted her ignorance at Uḥud and distinguished herself in the cause of Islām in such battles like Yarmūk.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    and Ibn Ubayy thought to defend Madīnah. Muslims who missed Badr wished to engage the enemy. They prevailed.


• 1000 set out against 3000 Quraysh.


• Ibn Ubayy removed his 300 followers, causing anxiety amongst the remaining 700.


• Two clans of the Anṣār thought to abandon the battle – a major sin – but remained. Allāh so loves the Anṣār that He proclaimed himself their friend in Sūrah Āl ʿImrān “wallāhu walīyumā” upon this incident of disobedience, not when they were obedient.


• Jubayr bin Muṭʿīm and Hind arranged for Waḥshī, an expert javelin thrower and slave to kill Ḥamzah (may Allāḥ be pleased with him), which he did.


• Flag-bearer, Muṣʿāb bin ʿUmayr martyred.


• 50 Muslim archers stationed on hill left their position when it seemed the Muslims were winning. This allowed the Quraysh cavalry to attack from the other direction and the Muslims were routed especially when rumour spread that Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   had been martyred.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   thrown with a stone, and front teeth smashed.


• Ṭalḥah binʿUbaydillāh shielded him with his own body against the arrows until his hand was paralysed.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   was too weak to climb to a rock to sit and offer Zhuhr. Ṭalḥah carried him.


• Amongst who died defending Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   was Abū Dahdah al-Anṣārī who had donated 500 trees in exchange for a tree in Paradise.


• The Quraysh gave up trying to reach Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  . Abū Sufyān called out that Uḥud was in exchange for Badr. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    told ʿUmar to reply, “Our dead are in Paradise. Your dead are in Hell.” Abū Sufyān called out, “We have ʿUzzā and you have none.” Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    told ʿUmar to reply, “Allāh is our Protector and you have none.”

https://youtu.be/qm8jcvyOyH0

https://youtu.be/4OvpI9DhHP0

21.                        Khandaq (Shawwāl 5 Hijrī)

• Jews of Banū Naḍīr orchestrated an alliance against the Muslims. They would supply a year’s harvest from Khaybar, the Quraysh 4000 men and the Ghaṭfān 6000 men. The Jews of Qurayzhah inside Madīnah would betray the Muslims.


• Salmān the Persian رضي الله عنه proposed the Persian tactic of digging a trench at the vulnerable northern front.


• Muslims worked through extremely harsh winter and hunger. Abū Ṭalḥah رضي الله عنه showed Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   a slab of stone tied to his stomach to placate his hunger. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    showed him two.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    called out, “O Allāh! There is truly no life but that of the Hereafter. Forgive the Anṣār and the Muhājirūn.” They replied, “We are those who have pledged to Muḥammad, to wage Jihād forever as long as we last.”


• A large rock could not be destroyed. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   himself smashed it in three blows. In each blow he prophesied conquest over Syria, Persia and Yemen in turn – at a time when the Muslims seemed to face utter destruction.


• Miracle of the increasing barley and mutton at the house of Jābir bin ʿAbdillāh رضي الله عنه .


• Severe siege for a month. Nuʿaym bin Masʿūd رضي الله عنه secretly embraced Islām and managed to turn the Arabs and Jews against each other. The lack of morale combined with a fierce hurricane made the Arabs withdraw.


• “None of you shall pray ʿAṣr except at Qurayzhah” – differences of opinion of the command existed even in the lifetime of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  .

https://youtu.be/S-kbhSVjH5c

22.                        Hudaybiyah (Ẓul Qaʿdah 6 Hijrī)

• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   saw from Allāh that he was performing ʿUmrah. Ṣaḥābah prepared to join him as pilgrims, not armed as an army. They dressed as such and brought animals for sacrifice to make their peaceful intentions clear.


• The Quraysh intended to stop the 1400 Muslims. They encamped at Ḥudaybīyah, on the border of the Ḥaram, where the Quraysh could not attack.


• ʿUthmān رضي الله عنه sent as ambassador. The Quraysh respected him offered to let him perform Ṭawā He refused if Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    could not, so they detained him in anger.


• Muslims heard that ʿUthmānرضي الله عنه had been killed. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    called on the Muslims to pledge to fight to the death under a tree. Even in that serious moment Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    made time to be light hearted with Salmāh bin Akwā رضي الله عنه .


• Eventually negotiations ensued and a treaty signed. The Ṣahābah were greatly offended by the deletion of Basmallāh and “Muḥammad Rasūlullāh” and the apparently harsh terms, but Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   was practical and Allāh intended something great.


• With peace achieved, the Muslims could interact with other tribes and spread the message. More people embraced Islām in the next two years than in the previous 19 years.

https://youtu.be/UaJtxvIfGNw

23.                        Khaybar & Muʿtah

• Khaybar, 112 km NE of Madīnah. The Jews there were once again plotting with Ghaṭfān against the Muslims.


• Shortly after returning to Madīnah, Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   marched against Khaybar. Only the participants of Ḥudaybiyah were allowed to join.


• Forts fell except for that of Marhab. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  , “Tomorrow I shall give the flag to a man who loves Allāh and His Rasūl and he will conquer the fort. ”


• ʿAlī’s رضي الله عنه eyes was afflicted. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    applied his saliva to his eyes and it was cured. He gave him the flag and he was victorious over Marhab.


• A Slave embraced Islām and was martyred in the battle. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   said, “I saw two Ḥūr standing by his side, although he never made a Sajdah to Allā”


• Khaybar was conquered and the Jews allowed to remain and farm on condition that half their crops would go to the Muslims. ʿAbdullāh bin Rawāḥāh رضي الله عنه used to divide the crops and let the Jews choose which half they wanted.


• 3000 Muslims marched to Muʾta when the Roman governor killed the ambassador of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  , Ḥārith binʿUmayr al-ʾAzdī رضي الله عنه .


• The first commander, Zayd bin Ḥārithah رضي الله عنه was killed, followed by Jaʾfar bin Abī Ṭālib رضي الله عنه . He was 33 and had just returned from a decade in Abyssinia. Then ʿAbdullāh bin Rawāḥāh رضي الله عنه .


• Khālid bin Wālid assumed command and returned the troops home.


• The Muslims derided them as runaways, but Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   said they were those who retreat to return to battle.

https://youtu.be/RDHq31Dldqs

24.                        Conquest of Makkah (19/20? Ramaḍān 8 Hijrī)

• As allowed by the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyah, Banū Bakr aligned itself with the Quraysh whilst Khuẓāʿah allied with the Muslims, feeling closer to the descendant of ʿAbd Manāf whose mother was from Khazāʿah.


• Bakr attacked Khuzāʿah with Quraysh assistance, who even encouraged them to massacre Khuzāʿah when they sort refuge in the borders of the Ḥaram.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   sent ultimatum to Quraysh – pay blood money; or break alliance with the offending section of Bakr; or face the consequences. The Quraysh decided on war.


• Ḥātib bin Abī Baltaʾah رضي الله عنه wrote to inform the Quraysh of the plan of attack. His messenger was caught and he was forgiven. He is one of the 313 of Badr.


• 10,000 Ṣaḥābah set out for Makkah. Even the Bible mentions this event.


• Abū Sufyān رضي الله عنه met Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    who was encamped outside Makkah. He embraced Islām and received guarantee of safety.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   entered Makkah on his camel. He carried the recently deceased Zaynab’s son with him. His best daughter who suffered much on his behalf. He was reciting Sūrah Fatḥ.


• Saʿd bin ʿUbādah shouted, “Today is a day of massacre. The Kaʿbah offers no sanctuary…” Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  , “Today is a day of mercy, the Kaʿbah will be covered…” origin of Kaʿbah covering


• After Ṭawāf, Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   personally began smashing the idols with his bow.


• Standing on the steps, “There is no god but Allāh alone Who has no partner! He was true to His promise and helped His slave. It is He alone who defeated the allies… O gathering of Quraysh, what do you say I shall do to you?” “Good! For you are noble brother, son of a noble brother.” “Then I say to you what Yūsuf said to his brothers, ‘There is no blame upon you today.’ Go, you are free.”


• Makkah embraced Islām, including Hind bint ʿUtbah.

https://youtu.be/EFN5Q_AfZWc

 

و صلى الله على راكب البراق كامل الأخلاق

Biography of Allah’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ in 29 Nights with Podcasts (15-19)

Herewith my notes for the Sīrah discussion I intend giving this year after Tarāwīḥ, Allāh willing. If we had all the time in the world we could not do justice to the greatest personality that ever walked the face of the earth. Yet in view of the lack of knowledge on the basics of his life by the general public I am using this platform for this purpose, on the premise that one can only truly love someone if one knows that person. As long as we are ignorant about the life and character of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    our love for him cannot be as complete as it could be.

سليمان الكندي
Twitter: @sulayman_Kindi

15.                        Hijrah of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ

• Meeting at Darun Nadwah. Imprisonment and exile rejected. Murder was the only option left but the clan of the murder would be held responsible. Abū Jahl proposed a man of each clan join in the murder so no single clan could be blamed.


• Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    emerged from Khadījah’s house, cast sand upon them, reciting from Yāsīn, they did not see him.


• Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    turned to look last time at Makkah, “O Makkah, you are the best of Allāh’s lands and most beloved. If not that your people have expelled me, I would never have left you.”


• Headed south instead of north, tactics.


• Status of Abū Bakr رضي الله عنه, Sūrah Tawbah, “Allah is with us,” i.e. him and Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    as they hid in the Cave of Thawr.


• Surāqah bin Mālik, horse kept sinking as he attempted to attack. Begged for written word of protection. Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    predicted that he would wear the Persian Emperor’s bracelets. Occurred in time of ʿUmar.

https://youtu.be/PH4NNgm53yo

16.                        Description of al-Madīnah, Arrival at Qubāʾ

• Built by two Jewish clans in the time of Mūsā, awaiting the final prophet.


• They were traders while the later Yemeni Azdīs were farmers.


• Yathrib was renamed Madīnah, whoever says Yathrib should seek forgiveness.


• Its south was protected by thick date plantations, the east and west by lava soil. The lava soil caused most of the water to be bitter, hence the drinking of nabīz (soaking dates in the water).


• Entered 12^th Rabīʿul ʾAwwal. This year was later renamed as first year of Islāmic calendar.


• Anṣār waited everyday until the noon heat drove them indoors. A Jew happened to see and called out. The Anṣār came rushing out. Women on the rooftops, men waving swords and children reciting Ṭalʿal badru ʿalaynā.


• Spent few days at Qubāʾ. Built Masjid and performed his first Jumuʿah there, then continued to centre of Madīnah.

https://youtu.be/XIlExvxIS4I

17.                        Madīnah

• Camel allowed to roam, stopped on the land of orphans, Sahl and Suhayl. Bought for al-Masjid an-Nabawī site. In the interim Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    stayed with his nearest Anṣārī relative Abū Ayyūb was from Najjār as was ʿAbdul Muṭṭalib’s mother. Tribal connections were important amongst Arabs. Allāh sets events in motions long before. Just as Ḥubbā bint Ḥulayl was mother of ʿAbd Manāf, which had repercussions after Ḥudaybiyah.


• Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    personally helped with the construction.


• Simple non-solid structure with, rain used to come through the roof.


• Two notable first encounters – ʿAbdullāh bin Salām, Chief Rabbi, who hears:


• يا أيها الناس: أفشوا السلام، وأطعموا الطعام، وصِلُوا الأرحام، وصلّوا بالليل والناس نيام، تدخلوا الجنة بسلام) رواه أحمد والترمذي


• Salmān, the Persian , who finds Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   in extremely emotional encounter after years of searching for the truth, and much sacrifice.

https://youtu.be/p_tSXcx8ICE

https://youtu.be/RxygP891dvs

18.                        The New Social Structure

• Muʾākhāh – the brotherhood. Each Muhājir was allocated with an Anṣārī brother. The Anṣār willing and most generously assisted their brethren and initially the Muhājirūn were made their heirs before the laws of inheritance were finalised in the Qurʿān.


• The generosity is unmatched in human history. The Qurʿān says of the Anṣār, “They give preference over their own selves even though they are poverty-stricken”


• Great praise for the Anṣār in Ḥadīth, “The sign of faith is love for the Anṣār…” “By Allāh! You are the most beloved people unto me.” They accepted when the rest of humanity rejected and thus included themselves amongst the rejected ones.


• However, people have also exaggerated. Whilst Saʿd bin Rabīʿah رضي الله عنه did offer half his wealth and one of his two wives for his Muhājir bother, ʿAbdur Raḥmān bin ʿAwf رضي الله عنه, ʿAbduraḥmān refused. He accepted assistance only in so far as starting off his own trade and son became independent. It’s incorrect what some say, “The Anṣār gave half their wealth and divorced their wives for the Muhājirūn.”


• Islāmic character is that those who have must try to assist. Those who don’t have should seek independence and not live on hand-outs.


• The Jews entered into a pact of mutual defence. The Jews violated the pact. An-Naḍīr tried to kill Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   and were expelled.  Qurayzhah helped the enemy at Khandaq and were destroyed.


• After the building of the Masjid, Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   chose a spot for a Muslim business area. Trade was previously entirely Jewish. This is an example of the balance Islām teaches.

https://youtu.be/-QBn3wR3E0w

19.                        Badr

• Abū Sufyān seized the Muslim property in Makkah, sold it in Syria to raise funds to attack Islā He was passing Madīnah returning to Makkah and had to be stopped.


• At this stage the Anṣār were only bound by Oath of ʿAqabah, i.e. protect Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   in Madīnah, there was no duty on them to confront Abū Sufyān, but their numbers were needed.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   out of shyness asked the Muhājirūn thrice if they would set out. Saʿd bin Muʿāẓ (may Allāh be pleased with him) realised that Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    was referring to his people. “Perhaps you think, O Messenger of Allāh, that the Anṣār have only undertaken to help you on their own territory. I wish to tell you on behalf of the Anṣār that you may lead us where you like, align us with whom you like, or break relations with whomsoever you see fit. You may take from our wealth what you want and leave for us what you want, but what you take would be more beloved than what you leave us. We shall follow whatever you command. By Allāh, if you go to Bark Ghimdān [symbol for far place] we shall follow you. By Allāh, should you jump into the sea, we would jump with you.”


• The Muhājir “troops” were the same people who sat behind each other to cover their nakedness, who fainted in Ṣalāh due to lack of food. They were now called to fight and none hesitated.


• ʿUmayr bin Abī Waqqās, young boy, hid so that Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   would not send him back. He was martyred.


• Abū Sufyān received intelligence and changed course whilst the Quraysh sent a fully equipped army of 1000 to meet the 313 Muslims.


• Reaching Badr Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   showed where specific enemies would be killed. It happened exactly.


• Night before Battle of Badr, Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   spent weeping, “O Allāh, if this little group is destroyed then never again will You be worshipped.” – Spiritual combined with material the next day of taking up arms. Middle path is Sunnah.


• 17^th Ramaḍān, first year that fast had been ordained. Some continued fasting some took leeway. Neither party reprimanded the other.


• Triple duel before the battle, Muslims win.


• Angels descend. The two boys of Afrāʾ and ʿAbdullāh bin Masʾūd (may Allāh be pleased with them) kill Abū Jahl. 70 Quraysh killed and 70 captured. 6 Muhājirūn and 8 Anṣār martyred.


• Muslims give their food to the prisoners and remain hungry.

https://youtu.be/R_hDebGcuZs

و صلى الله على راكب البراق كامل الأخلاق

Biography of Allah’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ in 29 Nights with Podcasts (11-13)

Herewith my notes for the Sīrah discussion I intend giving this year after Tarāwīḥ, Allāh willing. If we had all the time in the world we could not do justice to the greatest personality that ever walked the face of the earth. Yet in view of the lack of knowledge on the basics of his life by the general public I am using this platform for this purpose, on the premise that one can only truly love someone if one knows that person. As long as we are ignorant about the life and character of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    our love for him cannot be as complete as it could be.

سليمان الكندي
Twitter: @sulayman_Kindi

Contents

• The Year of Sorrow..


• Miʿrāj


• Oath of ʿAqabah.

11.                        The Year of Sorrow

• Shortly after the boycott ended Abū Ṭālib died.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   begged him to recite the Kalimah, but upon the taunting of Abū Jahl, “Are you going to leave the religion of Abdul Muṭṭalib?” he refused and insisted that he was dying on his father’s religion.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   was greatly grieved when his beloved uncle died on disbelief, but ordered Alī رضي الله عنه to bury him. Furthermore, he no longer had the protection of the chief of Banū Hāshim and persecution became more direct and violent.


• Thereafter our mother, Khadījah رضي الله عنها , died. Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   never smiled for months thereafter.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  had not married anyone else during her lifetime.


• She used to take food to the Cave of Ḥirāʾ. It was she who comforted Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   during his anxiety after the first revelation and was his pillar of strength. She was the first female believer. She spent all her wealth on him and his cause. He always remembered her and sent gifts to her friends, to the extent that ʿĀishah felt feminine discomfort in regards her status, despite never having met her.


• Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   sought the protection of aṭ-Ṭāʾif, the town associated with his the tribe of his childhood, Banū Saʿd.


• The chiefs rejected him and allowed the rabble to stone him till his feet bled.


• The angel in charge of the mountains around aṭ-Ṭāʾif offered to crush the town, but Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   refused, hoping their progeny would be believers.


• However, Adas, a Christian slave embraced Islām and a delegation of Jinn overhead his recitation and embraced Islām, as mentioned in Sūrah al-Jinn.

https://youtu.be/lzDYjfhkQB4

12.                        Miʿrāj

• A consolation for Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   for his great sorrow, and also indicates the status of Khadījah رضي الله عنها.


• Isrāʾ – night journey – authenticated by the Qurʾā


• From the Ḥaṭīm. Jibrīl now washed the heart of Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ for the second time.


• The exact date is not known, not even the year for certain. As Muslims we commemorate the lessons and commands, i.e. Ṣalāh, not the anniversary.


• Isrā, first half of the journey was earth city (Makkah) to earth city (Baytul Muqaddas). Second half was to heaven (Miʿrāj). This may be symbolic of rights of created and Creator.


• Performs Ṣalāh, leading all the previous Prophets. Muḥammad صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    is the Imām of Ambiyāʾ.


• Jibrīl asks him to choose between wine and milk.


• Ascension to the Heavens. Each gate-keeper angels asks, “Who is this? Was he called for?” Stories that heavens were specially decorated in preparation are false and have no basis in Ḥadīth.


• At each heaven specific prophets welcome him, from Ādam to Ibrāhīm.


• 50 Ṣalāh made compulsory, reduced by 5-10 at the insistence of Mūsā, until 5 for which we are rewarded 50.


• Various scenes of Paradise and Hell.


• When he related this to the Quraysh they mocked him and demanded evidence. He described the Masjid as Allāh showed him. The masjid was used as rubbish dump. This does not mean the building did not exist as some claim. Further when Umar conquered Baytul Muqaddas, he cleaned the Masjid, not built it.


• Abū Bakr earned his titles of ʾaṣ-Ṣidīq on this occasion when he immediately accepted the word of Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    without any doubt.

 

https://youtu.be/Wglb4ynAUVA

 

https://youtu.be/7QN8fRDe1N4

13.                        Oath of ʿAqabah

• Various tribes came to Makkah for business and pilgrimage.


• Having not convinced the Quraysh and Ṭāʾif, Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   turned to other tribes.


• He focussed on the prominent tribes for practical reasons, e.g. Kindah, Banū Shaybah, Banū Ḥanīfah. All rejected.


• At this early stage when Muslims were few in number and politically insignificant, Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    already promised the conquest of Persia to whoever accepted his message. Prophecy can only be accepted by those of faith when it seems impossible. There is nothing amazing about accepting what seems materially bound to happen.


• The Aws and Khazraj, two clans of Azd, had decimated each other in wars lasting years over petty issues and acutely needed a leader. They were politically unimportant, except for the location of their city, Yathrib, on the trade route to Syria.


• They understood more about Prophethood because the Jews lived in their city and declared that they awaited a Prophet. In fact two Levite clans built Yathrib at the site where they expected him to appear.


• Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    met 6 people of Khazraj at ʾAqabah from Yathrib, they were keen. They recognised this to be the promised Prophet and accepted.


• They returned home and spread Islā The next year 12 of both clans rendered the First Oath of ʿAqabah – oath of Islām


• Rasūlullāh r sent Musʿab bin ʿUmayr to teach Islā The people called him al-Muqriʾ, the Reader. When there was 40 Muslims Musʿab started the first Jumuʿah at the house of Asʿad bin Zurārah. People would always remember Asʿad at the time of Jumuʿah.


• The following year 71 men and 2 women pledged the Second Oath of ʾAqabah, but insisted that Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   would never leave them. This time oath of Islām combined with political allegiance.

https://youtu.be/xjQV0emDhwY

Biography of Allah’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ in 29 Nights with Podcasts (14)

Herewith my notes for the Sīrah discussion I intend giving this year after Tarāwīḥ, Allāh willing. If we had all the time in the world we could not do justice to the greatest personality that ever walked the face of the earth. Yet in view of the lack of knowledge on the basics of his life by the general public I am using this platform for this purpose, on the premise that one can only truly love someone if one knows that person. As long as we are ignorant about the life and character of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    our love for him cannot be as complete as it could be.

سليمان الكندي
Twitter: @sulayman_Kindi

 

14.                        Hijrah

• When Muslims later met to discuss when to start dating their calendar, Hijrah was chosen over Mawlūd, revelation of Qurʾān, etc.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    allowed his followers to go first. He would leave at the end. Thus was his character. Leadership is responsibility, not seeking privileges.


• The Quraysh tried to stop the Muslims. Thus families were split, e.g Umm Salmah, her husband and child.


• They had to leave their wealth behind, some had to give up everything, e.g. Ṣuhayb “Rūmī”


• All had to go secretly except ʿUmar, who openly announced his Hijrah. He arms himself, makes Tawāf and calls, “Whoever wishes to make his wife a widow and children orphans, then come and meet me…”


• Abū Bakr was not granted permission because he was destined to accompany Muḥammad صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ     When told he wept for joy. He had only 5,000 dirham left out of 40,000 before Islām. He spent everything on Islām.


• ʿAlī was left behind to give back the trusts. Despite their opposition, the Quraysh trusted al-Amīn صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    so much, they used to leave their valuables with him.

https://youtu.be/jU1QlJa9G9s

و صلى الله على راكب البراق كامل الأخلاق

Qaṭar: Satan’s Horn vs Dajjāl’s Foes

عن زيد بن خالد الجهني رضي الله عنه أن النبي صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قال: من فطر صائماً كان له مثل أجره غير أنه لا ينقص من أجر الصائم شيئاً. رواه الترمذي

Zayd bin Khālid al-Juhānī (May Allāh be pleased with him) narrates the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  said, “He who gives a fasting person something to break his fast with, receives a similar reward as him, without anything being reduced from the reward of the one who fasted.” [at-Tirmiẓī]

 

I start with this Ḥadīth. If it does not trouble you that contrary to feeding others, there are supposed Muslims who can gleefully try and blockade the food of other fasting Muslims during Ramaḍān, then indeed you are far too sophisticated for me. I respectfully ask you not to read any further and leave me to simple people who have some heart.

 

Disclaimer

 

• Firstly, I state at the outset that I am not going to be presenting some behind the scenes inside news, I do not have such news.


• Secondly, I am presenting two Ḥadīths applicable to the two parties at loggerheads. These are intended to understand the parties involved in terms of their general character, nature and motivations. I do not claim for an instant that either Ḥadīth refers to the current crisis definitely or specifically.

Two Camps – Their Histories

 

Najd is the central part of Arabia, to the east of al-Ḥijāz, the western coastal strip which included Makkah and al-Madīnah. The House of Saʿūd is based in Najd. They first appear in history less than 6 centuries back in ad-Diriyah in Najd. The Saʿūd later relocated to their present capital, Riyāḍ, which is also in Najd.

 

Whilst 6 centuries may seem long, in terms of Arab lineages this is nothing and in fact presents a problem. Whilst other royal families can trace their lineages back to the tribes which were contemporary to Allāhs Messengerصَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  the Saʿūdīs cannot. There are sometimes claims of Banū Ḥanīfah, sometimes of ʿAnazah but they are not conclusively proved. Where they irrefutably originated from before 6 centuries ago remains a mystery. This played into the hands of Egypt which was in conflict with the Saʿūdīs during the 1960s. Ṣawtul ʿArab radio boldly broadcast that they were not Arabs at all, but Jews. On the other hand, in other lands, the current and historical Arab kings could trace their lineage to actual Arab tribes (e.g. the Jordanian king is Ḥāshimī, Qurashī and the Rashīdīs who represented the Ottomans and fought against the Saʿūdīs are from Kindah, i.e. Kindīs). My teacher who taught in Makkah for several years mentioned that when a newspaper raised this question, the government’s reaction was to angrily demand how they could even question them, rather than simply produce their family tree.

 

Whatever the reality, the Saʿūdīs cannot conclusively be identified with any tribe mentioned in the Ḥadīth, only a region. Since the others have a distinct tribal identity, often outside the region (e.g. the Rashīdīs as Kindīs originate from Yemen) from the other angle, the region of Najd is symbolic of the House of Saʿūd who have lived there and currently rule there. From there they spread out and contaminated the Ḥijāz.

 

The people of Qaṭar too are not native to their present land. Three centuries ago the tribe of Banū Tamīm left Najd for Qaṭar where they reside to this day. Although, like any other tribe, there are Tamīmīs scattered throughout the modern world, it is only in Qaṭar that they form a cohesive tribal unit ruling over an independent land. The ruling family, the Āl Thānī, is descended from Qaʿqaʿ bin ʿAmr at-Tamīmī, who fought under Khālid bin al-Walīd (may Allāh be pleased with him) at Yarmūk. (On a side note, it irks me when journalists and even scholars cannot distinguish between al (the) and āl or aal (family of). That laymen do not know that it is Sūrah Āl ʿImrān not al-ʿImrān is understandable. For the learned not to exercise their brains is another matter). In short the ʾĀl Saʿūd are identified with Najd whilst Qaṭarīs have a primary tribal identity, documented right to the era of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ , the Banū Tamīm, which can be separated from the residential or regional identity.

 

Two Ḥadīths

 

There is a Ḥadīth related to Najd. It is narrated by ʾal-ʾImām ʾal-Bukhārī under the Chapter of Fitan (tribulations before the end of the world). It speaks of the region in relation to the tribulations, not any tribe, i.e. whilst Kindah, Tamīm and many other tribes may have passed through at various stages in history, the prophecy refers to certain people who actually inhabit Najd at the time of the tribulations. If Allāh wills these tribulations to be contemporary to our times, then there can be only one candidate the Ḥadīth refers to – the ʾĀl Saʿūd. Tamīm has vacated Najd. The Ḥadīth is as follows:

 

حدثنا علي بن عبد الله حدثنا أزهر بن سعد عن ابن عون عن نافع عن ابن عمر قال ذكر النبي صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ اللهم بارك لنا في شأمنا اللهم بارك لنا في يمننا قالوا يا رسول الله وفي نجدنا قال اللهم بارك لنا في شأمنا اللهم بارك لنا في يمننا قالوا يا رسول الله وفي نجدنا فأظنه قال في الثالثة هناك الزلازل والفتن وبها يطلع قرن الشيطان

ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUmar (may Allāh be pleased with father and son) narrates that the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  prayed, “O Allāh! Bless us in our Syria, O Allāh bless us in our Yemen.”

“O Allāh’s Messenger!” exclaimed [some people from Najd], “And in our Najd!”

[The Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  again] prayed, “O Allāh! Bless us in our Syria, O Allāh bless us in our Yemen.”

“O Allāh’s Messenger!” [they again] exclaimed, “And in our Najd!”

I [Ibn ʿUmar] think it was after the third time that he replied, “Over there will be tremors and tribulations. Over there does Satan’s horn rise.” [al-Bukhārī]

 

Syria is to the north of ʾal-Ḥijāz, while Yemen is to the south. She has no western neighbour, other than the Red Sea. Najd, to the east, was intentionally omitted from the prayer of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ . What does that tell you?

 

On the other hand, what does the Ḥadīth say of Banū Tamīm, i.e. the Qaṭārīs? ʿAl-Bukhārī narrates the following as well, in ʿal-Maghāzī :

عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه قال لا أزال أحب بني تميم بعد ثلاث سمعته من رسول الله صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  يقولها فيهم هم أشد أمتي على الدجال وكانت فيهم سبية عند عائشة فقال أعتقيها فإنها من ولد إسماعيل وجاءت صدقاتهم فقال هذه صدقات قومي

Abū Hurayrah (may Allāh be pleased with him) states:

I have always loved the Banū Tamīm since I heard Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  saying three things about them. “They will be the severest of my nation against Dajjāl.” Furthermore ʿĀishah had a captive from amongst them. So he said, “Free her, for she is from the descendants of Ismāʿīl.” When their charity arrived, he said, “These are the charities of my people.” [al-Bukhārī]

 

So there you have it. The people from where Satan’s horn rises have imposed a blockade on those who will be the severest against the Anti-Christ, the descendants of ʾIsmāʿīl (peace be upon him), the people of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ .

 

• Is it not Satanic for supposed Muslims to cut off the food of other Muslims during Ramaḍān of all times?


• Is it not Satanic to expel Muslims, separating mixed families, father from children, husbands from wives?


• Is it not Satanic to threaten 15 years imprisonment for those who express sympathy for their brethren in Qaṭār? (To be fair it is their ally, UAE)

Or are these Saʿūdī acts, sometimes I forget the difference between Satan and Saʿūd…

Track Record

 

I have no right to impose my interpretation of Ḥadīth on others (unlike some people), you may disagree, as long you do not endanger your faith by disputing Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  himself. Yet I would dare suggest that if you are honest and look at recent history it should be clear as to who wears the badge of Satan’s horn and who opposes the forces of the Anti-Christ.

 

Most certainly we can find fault with Qaṭārīs, as we can find in ourselves. Yet on the balance, Qaṭār is a nation which assists the poor and their shortcomings are human shortcomings, not deliberate assaults against Islām and Muslims, which their neighbours are guilty of.

 

The ʾUmmah has remained silent for far too long. It is close to a century now that Makkah and al-Madīnah have had to endure the Saʿūd rule initiated with the shedding of Muslim blood and the deliberate obstruction of the effort to revive the Khilāfah which the Turks had just abandoned. Also, who amongst the educated did not know that they were in the pay of the British? These should have been warning signals, but that was another generation. It may be that they had no full information and being under colonial rule, were desperate for any ruler who claimed the banner of Islām.

 

But that was then. Time has moved on and news is no longer the privilege of a few.

Yet the Saʿūd slavery to American interests was now known but overlooked.

The princes’ spending the Ummah’s wealth on gambling and prostitution was overlooked.

The utter destruction of the Islāmic heritage was overlooked.

The imprisonment and torture of opposition figures, including scholars were overlooked.

The deliberate interference amongst foreign Muslim communities in their Masājid, instead of inviting non-Muslims to Islām, was overlooked.

The deliberate ritualisation of Ḥajj and the segregation of Muslim for the first time were overlooked.

The inviting of Christian and Jewish troops to tramp on the sacred soil of Arabia was overlooked.

That not even extremist Shīʿah rulers had had the guts to disobey that final command of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  was overlooked.

The collaboration in overthrowing the only pious ruler modern Egypt has known and was democratically elected was overlooked.

The funding of Pharaoh Mubārak and Pharaoh Sīsī to help the Zionist besiege Ghazzah was overlooked.

Thus the deaths in Ghazzah resulting from the Saʿūdī-Egyptian siege were overlooked.

 

Now as we approach the century mark, our leaders will overlook the assault on another Muslim people whom Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  has praised. They are assaulted not by America or the Zionists, but by the “Custodian” of the Ḥaramayn.

 

Why? They do not have the same excuse as the previous generations. The reality is that Saʿūdī petrodollars and visas buy their silence. Just how much will Saʿūdī petrodollars and visas help them in their graves?

 

May Allāh bless Shaykh Salmān an-Nadwī, who has fearlessly denounced the Satanists err.. Saʿūdīs.

 

I shall not say, “Enough is enough!” That time passed by years ago. If your only concern when visiting the Ḥaramayn is which is the best perfume and clothing shops, then I can only pray that at least the Qaṭar siege will make you a more sensitised slave of Allāh.

 

سليمان الكندي

Twitter: @sulayman_Kindi

 

Biography of Allah’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ in 29 Nights with Podcasts (1-10)

Herewith my notes for the Sīrah discussion I intend giving this year after Tarāwīḥ, Allāh willing. If we had all the time in the world we could not do justice to the greatest personality that ever walked the face of the earth. Yet in view of the lack of knowledge on the basics of his life by the general public I am using this platform for this purpose, on the premise that one can only truly love someone if one knows that person. As long as we are ignorant about the life and character of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    our love for him cannot be as complete as it could be.

سليمان الكندي
Twitter: @sulayman_Kindi

Contents

1. The World Before Islam.. 3


2. Lineage. 3


3. Birth of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ 3


4. Childhood. 4


5. Youth. 4


6. Marriage. 4


7. Revelation. 5


8. Preaching. 5


9. Opposition & Migration (year 6). 6


10. The Boycott years (7-9). 7

 

1.     The World Before Islam

• “A bounty is appreciated when its lost.” To appreciate the light of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ understand the darkness before and what we would be in today without him.


• State of the Arabs.


• Byzantium and Persia, the superpowers of the day.


• Yemen, under Persia, land of maternal ancestry of Quraysh.


• Kaʿbah, its origins and origins of idolatry. Do Muslims worship the Kaʿbah?


• ʾIbrāhīm and ʾIsmāʿīl ʿalayhimas salām.

https://soundcloud.com/sulayman-kindi/seerah-001-the-world-before-islam

2.     Lineage

• ʾIbrāhīm and ʾIsmāʿīl ʿalayhimas salām.


• Jurhum of Yemen.


• Banū Khuzāʿah. Migrated to Makkah 5 centuries before Islā Quṣṣāy married woman of Khuzāʿah, hence generations later allied with Muslims, ultimately conquest of Makkah. Tafsīr of Sūrah Sajdah – destined matters are set in a thread of motion a thousand years before.


• Hāshim married woman of Yathrib, where his son, Shaybah = ʿAbdul Muṭṭalib grew up.


• Zamzam lost and found.


• Year of the Elephant. Delicacy of Arabic - ʿĀmul Fīl, NOT Sannatul Fīl.


• Abraha and the Elephants.

https://soundcloud.com/sulayman-kindi/seerah-002-lineage-of-rasulullah-sallallahu-alayhi-wa-sallam

3.     Birth of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ

• Makkah, 570, Exact date not absolutely known.


• Most narrations of miracles at birth are not authentically proven, except for the light which Aminah saw that extended all the way to Syria.


• The four “mothers” of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  . Abū Lahab frees Thuwaybiyah, as a result his punishment is alleviated in Hell. One moment of love is eternally rewarded, how then if a Muslim is steadfast in Sunnah?


• Name – almost unique amongst the Arabs.

https://soundcloud.com/sulayman-kindi/seerah-003-birth

4.     Childhood

• Never saw his father, ʿAbdullāh died during the pregnancy period.


• Quraysh sent their children to be raised in the desert – for health reasons and to learn pure Arabic.


• Banū Saʿd bin Bakr – a tribe which specialised in this kind of child rearing. Spoke the purest of Arabic and Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ later attributed his amazing eloquence to them. Experiencing drought.


• Ḥalīmah as-Saʿdīyah i.e. of Banū Sʿad, accompanied wet-nurses of her tribe to Makkah. All rejected Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ due to his perceived poverty. Ḥalīmah turned back and accepted custody as a last resort and immediately perceived blessings. Her old goat started producing milk again. Her riding animal became fast.


• Asked Āminah for an extension at age 2.


• At age 4 Jibrīl opened his chest and removed black spot from heart. Returned to Āminah.


• Age 6, Āminah dies at ʾAbwā. Umm ʾAyman takes him back to ʾAbdul Muṭṭalib.


• Age 8, ʿAbdul Muṭṭalib dies. Entrusted to Abū Ṭālib, the poorest of all the uncles.

https://soundcloud.com/sulayman-kindi/seerah-004-childhood

5.     Youth

• Teenage years spent as a shepherd.


• Allāh created circumstances e.g. fainting/ barriers against the customs of the time e.g. parties, working naked.


• Ḥilful Fuḍūl – oath to protect the oppressed. Al-Āṣ bin Wāʾil refused to pay the Zubaydī merchant from Yemen. Decent men gathered around ʾAbdullāh bin Jadʿān to halt such practice, including Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ . He was happy about this oath even after Islām, i.e. good can be done with non-Muslim cooperation.


• Learnt trade from Abū Ṭālib in Syria, but the incident of meeting the monk is denied by several scholars.

https://soundcloud.com/sulayman-kindi/seerah-005-youth

6.     Marriage

• Khadījah bint Khuwaylid, may Allāh be pleased with her, twice-widowed and had considerable wealth. Had children from her first husband. She is called aṭ-Ṭāhirah, the Pure Woman and her descendants are Banū Ṭāhirah


• Hired Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   to sell her merchandise in Syria.


• She was so impressed with his ability, honesty and character that she proposed to him, a poor man, having rejected the proposals of the elite of Makkah.


• Muḥammad صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   was 25 and she was 40. He was not worried about her age, he loved her character.


• She bore all his children except for ʾIbrāhīm son of Māriyah


• At age 35 Kaʿbah was destroyed by flood. The various clans argued who would replace the Black Stone. Agreed that whoever entered Masjid first could decide.


• Honour of even pagans. No Ḥarām funds allowed at the insistence of the worst pagan, Abū Jahl. So Kaʾbah was shortened to its present dimensions when Ḥalāl funds were depleted.

https://soundcloud.com/sulayman-kindi/seerah-006-marriage

7.     Revelation

• When Muḥammad صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   approached his 40^th year he began to feel an intense spiritual agitation and desire to worship in seclusion.


• Rocks greeted him and years later he remembered a particular rock. How then if we greet him with love?


• For 6 months before Ramaḍān he experienced true dreams.


• Monday during that Ramaḍān, first revelation, Cave of Ḥirāʾ in Mount Nūr.


• Darkness, Jibrīl’s form was not seen. Squeezed Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  thrice so hard he thought he was going to die.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   was anxious and it was our Mother, Khadījah raḍiyallāhu ʿanhā who comforted him at this critical juncture. She mentions his good character, not his ritual worship, e.g. assist the less fortunate, hospitable to guests, etc


• No further revelation for a while, people mocked, that his “demon” had abandoned him. In other words ,he was the first person to be tested.


• Khadījah raḍiyallāhu ʿanhā, took him to her cousin, the Christian monk, Waraqah bin Nawfal, who testified to his truth and that he would be persecuted. He died shortly thereafter and is known to enter Paradise.

https://soundcloud.com/sulayman-kindi/seerah-007-revelation

8.     Preaching

• Quiet preaching at the outset for three years. Most early coverts were poor, e.g. Bilāl, but also rich, e.g. ʿUthmān, may Allah be pleased with him.


• Invited his close relations to meals and preached to them, only ʾAlī, who was a child, accepted.


• First public preaching at Abū Qubays. Abū Lahab threw sand and cursed, “May you be destroyed for the rest of your day.” Sūrah Lahab revealed in response.


• Continuous preaching at all public venues - Kaʿbah, markets etc.


• Quraysh attempt to stop Muḥammad صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   through Abū Ṭālib, offering him wealth, kingship and women. Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ     responds, “O my uncle, were they to place the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left, and ask me to abandon this course, I would not turn from it until Allāh makes it victorious or I perish therein.”

https://soundcloud.com/sulayman-kindi/voice-002-sd1

9.     Opposition & Migration (year 6)

• Quraysh attempted various means to stop Islām. Shouting so that the Qurʾān could not be heard. Propaganda, telling people that Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ    was insane and should not be heard. Seeking advice from the Jews on how to combat him academically, (Sūrah Yūsuf and Sūrah Kahf).


• Al-Bazzār narrates: ʾAlī رضي الله عنه continued, “Indeed I saw the Quraysh grabbing Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   . One held him while another violently shook him. They were saying, ‘You are the one who made the gods one!’ By Allāh! None of us dared go near except Abū Bakr. He struck at one of them, pulled back another and shook another, whilst saying, ‘Woe unto you! Do you kill a man for saying my Lord is Allāh?’”


• Torture – Bilāl رضي الله عنه dragged through the streets. Beaten.


• Khabbāb رضي الله عنه branded with heated iron.


• Ṭalḥah رضي الله عنه seen dragged through the streets of Makkah as a young man. A woman was the most severe in abusing him. A foreigner asked who she was, it was his own mother.


• Sumayyah رضي الله عنها  the first martyr. Abū Jahl speared her through her private part.


• Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   gave permission to the persecuted Muslims to migrate to Abysinnia, Ḥabshah, Ethiopia. 15 Muslims migrated the first time,e.g. ʿUthmān.


• Negus, an-Najāshī, title of the Emperor, not name.


• Christian ruler known for his justice.


• They returned after 3 months, heard false rumour that the Quraysh accepted Islā


• Some accepted protection of Quraysh leaders.


• 2^nd migration was more than 70. This time the Quraysh sent a delegation under Amr bin al-ʿĀṣ to retrieve the “rebels and trouble makers”


• Jaʿfar bin Abī Ṭālib defended the Muslim position. He had refused the Quraysh example of bowing before the Emperor.


• His speech is lauded by scholars as the one of the best concise and comprehensive invitations to Islām


• فقال له جعفر: أيها الملك كنا قوما على الشرك نعبد الاوثان ونأكل الميتة ونسئ الجوار، يستحل المحارم بعضنا من بعض في سفك الدماء وغيرها، لا نحل شيئا ولا نحرمه.
  فبعث الله إلينا نبيا من أنفسنا نعرف وفاءه وصدقه وأمانته فدعانا إلى أن نعبد الله وحده لا شريك له ونصل الارحام ونحمي الجوار ونصلي لله عزوجل، ونصوم له، ولا نعبد غيره.،


• “O King! We were a people upon polytheism. We worshipped idols and ate carrion. We forgot our neighbours and regarded the unlawful as lawful, in that we shed each other’s blood amongst other things. We had no real concept of the permitted and the prohibited. Allāh then sent a Prophet unto us. We knew his loyalty, honesty and trustworthiness. He called us to worship God alone, without any partners; to maintain relations; to protect neighbours; that we pray unto God, fast for His sake, worshipping none but Him.” [Ibn Hishām]


• The Emperor granted the Muslims protection and evicted the Quraysh delegation with their gifts. It is probable that he died upon Islā Rasūlullāh صَلَّى الله عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ   performed the funeral of a Negus although the body was in another continent. It is probable that this was a second Negus and both were Muslims.

https://soundcloud.com/sulayman-kindi/seerah-009-opposition

10.                        The Boycott years (7-9)

• ʿUmar bin ʾal-Khaṭṭāb, arch-enemy of Islām becomes great defender of Islām, Dārul ʾArqam. First public cry of Takbīr which is how Muslims express joy. Not hand-clapping and other pagan customs.


• Abū Jahl led the Quraysh to impose a boycott on Banū Hāshim which would last three years.


• They were not allowed food, drink, trade, marriage with other clans, and went into exile in the Glen of Abū Ṭālib.


• Non-Muslim Hāshimīs maintained solidarity and accepted exile as well, excluding Abū Lahab.


• Banū Muṭṭalib voluntarily joined Banū Hāshim. Some laws of Sharīʿah remain specific to Banū Hāshim and Banū Muṭṭalib.


• Extreme hunger, eating leaves.


• Muṭʿim bin ʿAdī and others used to smuggle in some food.


• Eventually Zuhayr, son of Ātikah bint ʿAbdil Muṭṭalib led some Quraysh to tear up the boycott decree. Allāh had already sent termites to eat the document, excluding, “Bismikallāhumma”

https://youtu.be/HqPsp5GeO64

و صلى الله على راكب البراق كامل الأخلاق

Proposal at the Kaʿbah, Are there Fiancés in Islām?

عمران بن حصين قال قال النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم الحياء لا يأتي إلا بخير

"Modesty brings nothing but good" [al-Bukhari]

Thanks to Allāh, my health has improved and basics like ablution and prayer are no longer such physically taxing mountains to overcome several times daily. I however delayed writing on a few topics I had in mind, since I had applied to write for a UK based blog. More important than the financial remuneration offered, I thought that being part of a systematic structure would be beneficial to me. However, it seems that swimming in a stream of rejection is my medicine for cleaning the heart of arrogance.

Today I read a tweet by a brother, “What are your thoughts about a Turkish man proposing to his fiance in front of the Ka’bah. Is respect being lost?”

I hit the reply button, “Why have you called her fiancé even before the proposal?”

He thereupon tweeted, “I haven’t. This is what a newspaper where I got the story from described her as”

My reply was, “The newspaper should check that fiancé is male and fiancée is female” “more importantly, terms create reality. Islamically they had no relation. We need not copy west in Islamic media.”

Petty Issues are symptoms of Broader Issues

If a certain dear friend of mine should read the above, he would berate me, “Are there no bigger matters for you to concern yourself with? Why do you nit-pick like this?” (His name I shall not mention, but shall indicate him by his vowel deprived birth place of Hrvatska – hint, hint).

To me there are enough people addressing “the important issues”. Besides which, there are not many who explain the link between the “petty issues” and the “bigger issues” at play.

Terms create Reality

I have written several times on this point. The words we use help create perceptions and ultimately new realities. See for example, my article on calling Palestine, “Israel”. Yet with the copy-and-paste attitude of Muslim media, one sadly notes Muslims calling al-Ḥaram ash-Sharīf in Baytul Muqaddas, “The Temple Mount”, for example. They never pause to consider the broader issues and the role they are playing in removing our claim to our sacred place.

So what is the big deal of saying “fiancé” whether before or after the proposal? In itself, as a simple description of a man and woman intending to marry each other, it is merely a word of identification. That is not a problem, for that is what the dictionary says. However, my gripe is with the unislāmic social conventions attached to the term, and which have become institutionalised amongst us as well.

Imitating Non-believers

Firstly, the issue of Tashabbuh bil Kuffār (imitating the non-believers), an issue which Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  and the jurists discussed at length, seems to have entirely disappeared as a matter of concern from present day Muslims - scholars and the masses. Where does the concept having a fiancé as an institutionalised norm originate from? Is the custom of prolonged “engagements” even compatible with the Sunnah? Would we even need to describe someone as a fiancé or fiancée if we adhere to the Sunnah instead of alien social norms?

Fiancé is not an empty term. It is a word used by the non-Muslims to indicate an entire social condition which is anathema to Islām. An Islamic wedding is simple both in implementation and expenditure. Beyond the social customs and financial extravagance of the engagement (which Muslims are so eager to ape) being a fiancé in practice becomes a licence to take liberties of marriage, which Islām does not condone before the actual marriage transaction. How many of the customs, parties and extravagances which occur between the proposal and the wedding have any Islāmic sanction, and how many anger Allāh, thus depriving the couple of blessings?

On one level, Muslims imitate the non-Muslims in discarding the laws of Ḥijāb and seize the term fiancé as a justification. They would date and say, “She is my fiancée!” A woman is either a stranger who should be respected with all the applicable laws and barriers of ḤIjāb, or she is your legally married wife and partner. Where in Islām is there scope for this intermediate stage of fornication on whatever level? By using the terms of unislamic immodesty, we help create an atmosphere where it becomes socially acceptable.

On an even more extreme level, accepting fiancé as an institution is already leading to the western way of the engaged couple living together before the marriage. She is my fiancée, we are living together to save expenses and to get to know each other.

I try to keep abreast of global developments. Yet I must confess to be completely taken aback to read on that when Prince William of the UK married his “fiancée” they had already been living together. Not that I do not know that it happens, but somehow I expected more from the future head of the Anglican Church. Yet it was not the immodesty which shocked me, it was the blasé manner in which the British media mentioned it, it was so normal. This is what I fear for us, not that we sin, but that our hearts accept this as normal.

Going to the Kaʿbah and proposing, which would entail so many violations of Ḥijāb (e.g. travel), is simply an extension of the license Muslims have illegally allowed couples who are “engaged” or have indicated that their dating will lead to marriage. By allowing respect to unmarried couples because “she is his fiancée,” we all share responsibility in this disrespect shown at the Kaʿbah.

Polytheism in Legislation

Another concept which many Muslims are no longer bothered about is ash-Shirk fit-Tashrīʿ (ascribing partners unto Allāh in the right of legislation). A man and woman who fornicate but acknowledge that it is a sin, remain Allāh’s sinful slaves and the doors of repentance are open unto them, however much the self-righteous judge them. On the other hand, someone who defends the right of couples “to express their love” before marriage (fornicate), even if he does not do the deed himself, has challenged Allāh’s right to sole-legislation, and is in a much worse spiritual plight than the actual fornicator.

There is a growing disease of Muslims having divorced, but remaining together, because “what will people say?” I unfortunately know such couples. Justifying such adulterous cohabitation is worse than the act of the adultery. However, the process of desensitising the couple’s aversion to adultery begins when their families are happy to let them defy Ḥijāb, “because we are fiancé and fiancée.”

Ḥijāb of Words

Ḥijāb is not just how we dress or even interact with each other, but the lives of the Companions of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  teach us modesty of the mind and words. A most beautiful example is that of the wife of ʿAbdullāh bin ʿAmr bin al-ʿĀṣ, may Allāh be pleased with them.

ʿAbdullāh رضي الله عنه  was devoted to his worship and was not inclined to marriage. His father, ʿAmr رضي الله عنه, eventually got him married. ʿAmr رضي الله عنه  visited his new daughter-in-law, may Allāh be pleased with her, to enquire how she was being treated. She replied, “He is a pious man. He spends the day fasting and the night praying.”

ʿAmr exploded in rage and complained to Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  against his son.

Er…. Did I miss something? Yes, the lady was being so modest yet eloquent, most of us who do not give account on what words should and should not be used, would miss the point. She had in fact most respectfully and modesty, yet honestly, indicated to her father-in-law, that she was a woman with human needs. With her husband who fasted the entire day and prayed the entire night, there was no opportunity for satisfying her natural desire.

Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  advised the young man to exercise a balance and to fulfil the rights of all.

Those who were present when the Word of Allāh was revealed, understood that the words we use have an effect. If we are to institutionalise immodest terms amongst ourselves, especially when it implies so much more, we allow for immodesty to become the norm.

سليمان الكندي
Twitter: @sulayman_Kindi

Crusader ʿAkkā vs Zionist Ghazzah

المؤمنون كرجل واحد إن اشتكى رأسه تداعى له سائر الجسد بالحمى والسهر

ʾan-Nuʿmābin Bashīr (may Allāh be pleased with him) narrates that Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ said, “The believers are like a single body. When his head complains, the entire body mutually calls out to him with fever and lack of sleep.”  [Muslim]

There are many striking parallels between the Crusades, almost a millennium ago, and the current situation in Palestine. To mention but a few:

• The geography


• The suppression of ʾIslām


• The role of scholars in reviving ʾIslām’s fortunes e.g. ʿAlī bin Ṭāhir as-Sulamī (may Allāh’s mercy be upon him)


• Treason of the Rawāfiḍ


• Treason of supposedly Sunnī rulers who aligned with the Crusaders against ʾIslām (Damascus princes then, Egypt and the Saʿūd royals today)

A comparison I wish to highlight today, is the contemporary Zionist siege of Ghazzah, vs. the Crusader siege of ʿAkkā (Acre).

ʿAkkā

Ever since its conquest by the Noble Companion of Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  , Suraḥbīl bin Ḥasanah (may Allāh be pleased with him), ʿAkkā had played a distinguished role in the history of ʾIslām, not least because of its position as a strategic port in the north of Palestine.

Following his decisive victory at Ḥiṭṭīn (4^th July 1187), the Crusaders surrendered ʿAkkā to Ṣalāḥuddīn. However, on 28^th August 1189, King Guy surprise attacked ʿAkkā and laid siege to it. On the sea, the siege was supported by Sicily (Italians), Danes and Frisians (Dutch). On land, troops from France, Flanders (Belgium), Germany, Italy and Armenia added to the Crusader host.

Attempted Relief

Ṣalāḥuddīn arrived with the Muslim army on 4^th October and unsuccessfully attempted to break the siege. The Muslims were repulsed by the combined armies of Europe and the Ṣulṭān had to settle for pressuring the Crusaders by laying siege to them in turn. His fleet did however manage to break through and supply the besieged Muslims with food on the 30^th October.

Crusaders are further reinforced

Ṣalāḥuddīn desperately tried to save the Muslims for 8 months, but was unsuccessful. Worse was to come from July 1190, when the armies of England, France, Germany and Austria even further strengthened the Crusaders. The following year even more troops arrived with the kings of France (Philip) and England (Richard). On the 12^th July 1191 ʿAkkā surrendered and the flags of England, France and Austria flew over the city.

Massacre

On the 11^th August 1191 Ṣālāḥuddīn sent the first of three payments to ransom the Muslim prisoners held by the Crusaders. This was not fast enough for Richard. 9 days later he ordered 3000 Muslims to be sent to a hill called Ayyadieh. This was deliberately in full view of the Muslim camp, and in particular, Ṣalāḥuddīn’s headquarters. The Crusaders then proceeded to cold-bloodedly massacre the defenceless Muslims. Of course, Muslims are always terrorists, the ruthless barbarians who kill us are always the good guys.

The horrified Muslim warriors could see this bloodbath with their own eyes, this was no CNN broadcast. What emotion swept them, I cannot pretend to describe. They had fought close to two years to rescue their brethren. They had spent that time away from family and seen comrades fall to the enemy. The enemy had given its word and now causally killed 3,000 Muslim men, women and children. The broken Muslims attempted a final rescue but never made it up the hill. Allāh knows best how many joined the 3,000 martyrs in Paradise.

Tears vs Tweets

History records that ever since his repentance from his youthful lifestyle, Ṣalāhuddīn prayed every compulsory prayer 5 times daily with congregation, never alone. In addition, he never missed a single Tahajjud (optional night prayer). This was his constant lifestyle on the battlefield and on the rare occasion when he went home. History also records that his tender nature could not bear to see his Christian enemy suffer, let alone his fellow Muslims. Beyond the sweet pious Ṣultān, I would not venture to know how many Muslims spent the night after the massacre shedding tears. However many they may have been, they were certainly less than the tweets and retweets we emotionlessly broadcast in a few minutes. Yet, however few they may have been, I would dare venture that each tear was well received in the Divine Court, along with each drop of blood shed at Ayyadieh.

So how do contemporary Muslims react?

Ghazzah, the southern Palestinian port, receives a different reaction from contemporary Muslims as opposed to the reaction of our forebears to ʿAkkā, the northern Palestinian port. For one, no Muslim army has as yet been despatched to rescue Ghazzah, despite her siege being way longer than that of ʿAkkā. Of course, the sophisticated Muslim will be able to educate me on the realities of modern politics and enlighten me why that would be a naïve endeavour. Yes, I am not sophisticated, but what is quite simple for me to understand is that ʿAkkā was besieged by those who openly disbelieved in Allāh and His Allāh’s Messenger صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ  , while Ghazzah is besieged by those who claim to be Muslim!

It is utterly hypocritical of the Muslim ʾUmmah at large, and activists in particular, to condemn and campaign against the Jewish blockade to the north, and quietly ignore their allies, the Egyptians, who besiege Ghazzah from the south.

Very easy to condemn the Zionist enemy, but no Muslim state, organisation or institute mention Sisi’s blockade, which is financed by the other Satanic regime of the region, the House of Saʿūd. How disgusted would the scholars who accompanied Ṣalāḥuddīn on his campaigns be, if they had known that the scholars of today either actively whip up support for these two murderous regimes, or maintain a “pious” silence for fear of losing financial backing or not being allowed an annual visa to Arabia. Their finances and annual pilgrimages take priority over speaking the truth and liberating the holy cities from regimes hostile to Islām. Perhaps I am wrong and there is great virtue and priority in multiple pilgrimages, when so many Muslims are starving, being killed and are besieged. Our contemporary scholars will be able to boast of their elevated position on the Day of Resurrection, and look down on Ṣalāhuddīn. Ṣalāḥuddīn, never knew a time to rest to even perform the compulsory pilgrimage, let alone annual voluntary pilgrimages. These scholars should also strongly rebuke the scholars who fought alongside Ṣalāḥuddīn, such as Qāḍī Bahāʾuddīn, or those who advised him, such as the Muḥaddith, ʾIbn ʿAsākir, for allowing him to fight for the sake of Islām and Muslim lives, instead of going on annual pilgrimages. Silly fellows!

Instead of rescuing Ghazzah, Egypt and her Saʿūdī paymasters actively besiege Ghazzah, to the extent of destroying Palestinian crops. To the eternal shame of Islām! There may have been other stinking traitors in the history of Islām, but I know not of anything as shameless as the Egypt-Saʿūd surrender. So enthusiastic as they are they to besiege Ghazzah, that Egypt joyfully evicts thousands of her own citizens along the Ghazzah border and allocates 79 square km of the lands of Islām to further tighten the noose around the Muslims of Ghazzah! For shame! And shame on the Muslims who remain quiet on this! Ghazzah vs ʿAkkā? There is no comparison.

You smugly declare that you do not buy dates from occupied Palestine, but do not care that your own Muslim governments stop food from Ghazzah.

You righteously tweet that unlike some Muslims, you do not buy a Jewish owned iced coffee powder, but do not care that your own Muslim governments stop medicine from Ghazzah.

Food? Medicine? A welfare worker told me that so many people are maimed in Ghazzah, they begged him to try and bring them adult diapers as they no longer have control over their bodies. Of course, your time-shares in Makkah and your shopping sprees there for the latest “Islamic” fashion and perfumes should always have priority.

Your forebears  at ʿAkkā should not spit on you. You are not worthy of their of their spit.

سليمان الكندي
Twitter: @sulayman_Kindi