Al-W¥^idÏ's Asb¥b al-Nuz‰l - The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies ...
Al-W¥^idÏ's Asb¥b al-Nuz‰l - The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies ...
Al-W¥^idÏ's Asb¥b al-Nuz‰l - The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies ...
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
Chapter 60: Surah <strong>al</strong>-Mumtahanah<br />
we found a woman on a camel-borne sedan chair. We said to her: ‘Take the letter out’. She said: ‘I do not<br />
have any letter!’ We said to her: ‘You will either give us the letter or we will strip you naked’. When she<br />
heard this, she got the letter from her braids. We took it to the Messenger of <strong>Al</strong>lah, <strong>Al</strong>lah bless him and<br />
give him peace. <strong>The</strong> letter read: ‘From Hatib ibn Abi B<strong>al</strong>ta‘ah to some people of the idolaters of Mecca’,<br />
and informed them about some of what the Messenger of <strong>Al</strong>lah, <strong>Al</strong>lah bless him and give him peace,<br />
intended to do. <strong>The</strong> Prophet, <strong>Al</strong>lah bless him and give him peace, asked Hatib: ‘What is this, O Hatib’<br />
Hatib answered: ‘Do not be hasty [in judging me], I am a man who is just annexed to the Quraysh, for I<br />
am not a Qurashite. <strong>Al</strong>l the Emigrants you have with you have relatives who will protect their own relatives.<br />
I have no relatives in Mecca, and since I lacked relatives I wanted to get some assistance from them.<br />
By <strong>Al</strong>lah, I did not do it because I doubt my religion nor because I have accepted disbelief after choosing<br />
Islam’. <strong>The</strong> Messenger of <strong>Al</strong>lah, <strong>Al</strong>lah bless him and give him peace, said: ‘He has said the truth!’ But<br />
‘Umar exclaimed: ‘Let me strike the neck of this hypocrite!’ <strong>The</strong> Prophet, <strong>Al</strong>lah bless him and give him<br />
peace, said: ‘He has taken part in the Battle of Badr; and you do not know, perhaps <strong>Al</strong>lah has looked at<br />
those who took part in the Battle of Badr and said: ‘Do as you please for I have forgiven you’. <strong>The</strong>n this<br />
verse was reve<strong>al</strong>ed (O ye who believe! Choose not My enemy and your enemy for <strong>al</strong>lies…)”. 2 This was narrated<br />
by Bukhari from <strong>al</strong>-Humaydi and by Muslim from Abu Bakr ibn Shaybah and another group, <strong>al</strong>l<br />
of whom related it from Sufyan.<br />
(Verily ye have in them a goodly pattern for everyone who looketh to <strong>Al</strong>lah and the Last<br />
Day…) [60:6-8].<br />
<strong>Al</strong>lah, ex<strong>al</strong>ted is He, says to the believers: “You have in Abraham as well as in the prophets and friends of<br />
<strong>Al</strong>lah good role models, regarding their declaration of enmity towards their relatives who were idolaters,<br />
which should be emulated”. So when this verse was reve<strong>al</strong>ed, the believers declared their relatives who<br />
were idolaters to be their enemies. <strong>The</strong>y showed this enmity to them and absolved themselves of <strong>al</strong>l the<br />
things that they did or believed in. <strong>Al</strong>lah, ex<strong>al</strong>ted is He, knew that this was hard on the believers and<br />
so He reve<strong>al</strong>ed (It may be that <strong>Al</strong>lah will ordain love between you and those of them with whom ye are at<br />
enmity) [60:7]. And He did just that when many of them embraced Islam, thus becoming brothers and<br />
friends. Consequently, they mingled with and married from among each other. <strong>The</strong> Messenger of <strong>Al</strong>lah,<br />
<strong>Al</strong>lah bless him and give him peace, married Umm Habibah, the daughter of Abu Sufyan ibn Harb. As a<br />
result, Abu Sufyan mellowed a little. When he heard of the news of his daughter’s marriage, he said while<br />
he was still an idolater: “He is an outstanding person, no harm sh<strong>al</strong>l come to him”. 3<br />
Abu S<strong>al</strong>ih Mansur ibn ‘Abd <strong>al</strong>-Wahhab <strong>al</strong>-Bazzaz informed us> Abu ‘Amr Muhammad ibn Ahmad <strong>al</strong>-<br />
Hiri> Abu Ya‘la> Ibrahim ibn <strong>al</strong>-Hajjaj> ‘Abd <strong>Al</strong>lah ibn <strong>al</strong>-Mubarak> Mus‘ab ibn Thabit> ‘Ami ibn ‘Abd<br />
<strong>Al</strong>lah ibn <strong>al</strong>-Zubayr> his father who said: “Qutaylah bint ‘Abd <strong>al</strong>-‘Uzza went to visit her daughter Asma’<br />
bint Abi Bakr and took with her gifts: desert lizards, clarified butter and dry cheese. However, Asma’<br />
refused to let her in her house and rejected her gifts. ‘A’ishah went on beh<strong>al</strong>f of Asma’ to ask the Prophet,<br />
<strong>Al</strong>lah bless him and give him peace, about this. <strong>Al</strong>lah, ex<strong>al</strong>ted is He, reve<strong>al</strong>ed (<strong>Al</strong>lah forbiddeth you not<br />
those who warred not against you on account of religion) [60:8]. Asma’ then let her mother into her house<br />
and accepted her gifts”. 4 This was narrated by <strong>al</strong>-Hakim Abu ‘Abd <strong>Al</strong>lah in his Sahih> Abu’l-‘Abbas <strong>al</strong>-<br />
Sayyari> ‘Abd <strong>Al</strong>lah <strong>al</strong>-Ghaz<strong>al</strong>> Ibn Shaqiq> Ibn <strong>al</strong>-Mubarak.<br />
(O ye who believe! When believing women come unto you as fugitives, examine them. <strong>Al</strong>lah is Best<br />
Aware of their faith…) [60:10].<br />
Ibn ‘Abbas said: “On the year of Hudaybiyyah, the idolaters of Mecca signed a peace treaty with the Messenger<br />
of <strong>Al</strong>lah, <strong>Al</strong>lah bless him and give him peace. This treaty stipulated that whoever of the people of<br />
Mecca runs away to him from them should be returned to them, and whoever of his Companions runs<br />
2<br />
Tabari, :60; Qurtubi, :38; Durr, :125.<br />
3<br />
Qurtubi, :58.<br />
4<br />
Tabari, :66; Qurtubi, :59.<br />
227
Change language