The life of the Prophet Muhammad - Ibn Kathir - volume 2 of 4

IMAM ABU AL-FIDA' ISMA?L IBN KATH~R 153
give each one a sharp sword and they would go to him and use the swords to
strike him in unison. They would kill hi and we would then be rid of him. If
they do this, his blood will be spread over all the mbes. And the Bann 'Abd
Manaf will not be able to do battle against them all. So they will accept blood
money which we can pay them."
"'The Najdi sheikh commented, L'What he says is right. This is the right idea,
and no other."
"'Having agreed upon this, the assembly broke up.
"'Gabriel then came to the Messenger of God (SAAS) and told him, "Do not
sleep tonight on the bed you usually use."
"'When it was fully dark that night the Quraysh men gathered outside his
door, waiting for him to sleep so they could attack him. Having seen where they
were, the Messenger of God (SAAS) said to 'Ali b. Abu T~lib, "Sleep on my
bed, wrapping yourself in this green cloak of mine from Hadramaut; sleep in it.
You'll not come to any harm from them." The Messenger of God (SAAS) was
in the habit of sleeping in that cloak of his.'"
This story told by Ihn Ishaq is also related by al-Waqidi, with the chains of
authority from 'A'isha, Ibn 'Ahbas, 'Ali, Suraqa b. Malik b. Ju'shum and others,
the various accounts overlapping and saying much as above.
Ibn Ishaq's account continues, "Yazid h. Aba Yaad related to me, from
Muhammad h. Ka'b al-Qur~i, who said, 'The men having met there at his door,
Abn Jahl, who was among them, said, "Muhammad claims that if you follow him
you'll become kings of the Arabs and non-Arabs alike. Then you'll be given life
after death and be provided with gardens like those of the Jordan. If you don't
do that, then, he says, you will be slaughtered, given life after death but be put
into hell-fire where you will he burned."'
"The Messenger of God (SAAS) then picked up a handful of dirt, saying,
'Yes, I do say that. And you are one of them!'
"Then God took away their sight from them and they could not see him. He
began sprinkling the dirt on to their heads while he recited the following verses:
'Yz sin. By the Qur'm the wise. You are among those sent forth upon a straight
path' up to the verse 'We have placed a barrier before them and a harrier behind
them, and have covered them over so chat they cannot see' (siirat YLZ Sin;
XXXVI, v.3-9). Every single man among them had dirt thrown on his head.
"He then left, and went where he wished.
"Someone who had not been there with these men then arrived and asked,
'What are you waiting for here?' They replied, 'For Muhammad.' He commented,
'God damn you! Muhammad just came out to you and he did not leave
any single one of you without throwing dirt on your head. He then left and went
elsewhere. Can't you see what has happened to you?'
"Each man then placed a hand on his head and found dirt there. Looking
closely, they saw 'Ali on the bed covered in the cloak of the Messenger of God
(SAAS). They stayed there like that until morning; when 'Ali arose from the
bed, they said, 'By God, what he told us must have been true!"'