THE LIGHT THEY FOLLOWED

[A Brief Biography of Prophet Muhammad(ﷺ)]—- Part 2

Continuation from Part 1 — To read Part 1 Click on this link https://iqralearntobelight.wordpress.com/2023/05/25/the-light-they-followed/

Let us now approach the first years of his message. Those were years one rarely finds an equal to in the annals of history for constancy, truth, and eminence. Those were the years which revealed, more than any others, all the facets of the teacher and guide of all humanity. Those were years that opened the living book of his life and heroism and, more than any other years, represented the cradle of his miracles.

Throughout those years, the Messenger of Allah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam)was alone. He left all he possessed of comfort, security, and settled life. He approached the people with what they were not familiar with or rather with what they detested. He approached them and directed his words to their reasons, and it is a difficult task for a person who directs his speech to the minds of people instead of their feelings. The Messenger of Allah, Muhammad (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) did not only do that since the consequence of addressing the mind might be bearable if you are standing within the circle of common conventions and common aspirations. But when you call them towards a distant future which you perceive but they do not, which you live in and they are not aware of, it is a difficult task. Indeed, when you address their minds and rise to destroy the essence of their lives from the base, though you do that in a sincere, honest way and not urged by a certain purpose or glory, it is a risk which cannot be taken except by the leaders of the righteous people and messengers.

The Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) was the hero and great master of that situation. The prevalent form of worship at that time was idol worship, where rituals associated with idols were considered a religion. The Messenger ((Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) did not resort to any manipulations or intrigues. The challenging circumstances and the weighty responsibility could have been valid reasons for him to use his intellect to gradually introduce the concept of “monotheism”, rather than surprising the people with it. He had the capability and the right to slowly guide the community away from their ancestral idol gods, which had been passed down for generations over centuries. He could have started by addressing the issue indirectly, in order to minimize a direct confrontation that he knew would provoke intense opposition and draw all their weapons against him.

Yet, he did not. This illustrates that he was a Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) He heard a divine voice within him telling him to rise, and he did, and telling him to deliver the message, and he did so without the force of weapons and without fleeing! He confronted them from the first Instant with the essence of the message and the core of the case: “O people, I am the Messenger of Allah unto you, to worship Him and not to set partners With Him. These idols are intellectual falsehoods. They are of no harm or benefit to you”.

From the very beginning, he faced them with such clear and Plam words, and from the very beginning he faced the severe struggle which he had to undergo until his departure from life! Or were the early believers in need of a prompting power to support the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)!

What awakened conscience would not be stirred by such a rare and unique scene! It was the scene of a man known to the people to have full Intellectual power and immaculate behaviour, standing alone, facing his people with a call which could bring mountains down. Words were issuing forth from his heart and lips, obedient and superb, as if in them lay all the power, will and design of the future, as if it were fate announcing its proclamation!

But perhaps this was the prompting of a good spirit, after which Muhammad (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) would worship his Lord as he liked, leaving the deities of his people in their place and leaving his community’s religion alone.

If such a thought occurred to some minds at that time, Muhammed (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) soon dissipated it. He made it quite clear to the people that he was a Messenger and had to convey the message, that he could not be silent nor turn into himself after being guided by the truth and enlightenment. All the powers of the world and nature could not have silenced him or stopped him because it was Allah Who made him speak and move and Who guided his footsteps.

The Quraish’s reaction came as swift as flames stirred by a violent wind. Troubles began to be wreaked upon a soul unaccustomed to anything but absolute grace. The Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) then began to teach his first lessons with utmost mastery and amazing loyalty. The image of this scene is paramount in all places and at all times, as well as in history. Those with an awakened conscience in Makkah were pleased, filled with admiration, and came clöser. They beheld a lofty and majestic man. They did not know whether his neck had become longer until it was able to touch the sky or the sky had come down to crown his head. They beheld loyalty, steadfastness and eminence.

However, the most significant incident occurred when the noblemen of the Quraysh approached Abu Talib and expressed their discontent. They stated, “We cannot tolerate someone who insults our forefathers, ridicules our aspirations, and criticizes our deities. You must either restrain him or we will engage in a battle that will lead to the destruction of one of the parties.”

Abu Talib sent a message to his nephew saying, “My nephew, your people have approached me and talked about your affairs. You have to think of me and yourself and not burden me with what I cannot endure.”

What then was the attitude of the Messenger of Allah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam)? The only man who had stood with him seemed to be abandoning him or rather seemed unable to confront the Quraish who sharpened all their teeth. The Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) did not hesitate in his reply, and his determination did not waver. No! He did not even search for the words to show his tenacity. It was already there, efficiently rising to deliver one of his most significant lessons to the whole of humanity and to dictate its highest principles.

Thus he spoke: “O uncle, by Allah, if they put the sun on my right and the moon on my left in order to abandon this matter until it is manifested by Allah or I perish by it, I would never abandon it!”

Peace be upon you, O Prophet of Islam, you who were colossal among men, and your words were colossal. Abu Talib thereupon restored his courage and the courage of his forefathers at once, clasped the right hand of his nephew with his two hands, and said, “Say what you like, for, by Allah, I will never force you to do anything at all.”

Muhammad (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) then did not depend on his uncle for protection and security, though his uncle was capable of that, but he was the one bestowing security, protection and steadfastness on people around him.

Any honest person who beholds a scene like that cannot but hasten to love, be loyal to, and believe in that Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam).

His persistence regarding truth, his perseverance with the message, and his patience during great troubles were all for the sake of Allah and not for personal benefit. All these were bound to attract brilliant minds and to awaken conscientious people to follow the light beckoning to them and hasten to the honest and true Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) who came to purify our souls and guide us. People beheld him while harm was reaching him from every comer. The condolence he had sought from his uncle Abu Taalib and his wife Khadijah was denied him because they both died within days of each other.

Whoever desires to imagine the extent of persecution and war launched by the Quraish against the unarmed Messenger, suffice it to Imow that Abu Lahab himself, who was his most bitter rival and enemy, was so conscience-stricken one day by what he beheld that he announced he would protect the Messenger, help him, and stand against any aggression against him. But the Messenger refused his protection and remained lofty, raising his head and remaining loyal to his message. Nobody could avert harm from him because nobody dared to do so! Even the eminent Abu. Bakr could do nothing but weep.

One day, the Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) went to the Ka’bah and, while he was circumambulating it, the nobles of the Quraish who were waiting for him suddenly ran and surrounded him, saying, “Is it you that say such-and-such a thing about our deities?” And he calmly answered them, “Yes, I say that.” They held him by the end of his clothes while Abu Bakr pleaded for his release, saying with tears pouring, “Are you going to kill a man for saying, Allah is my Lord?”

Whoever saw the Messenger on the day of Al-Ṭāʾif was sure to see some example of his truth and loyalty worthy of him. He turned his face towards the tribe of Thaqiif, calling them to Allah, the One and the Vanquisher.

Was not what he was encountering from his clan and his folk enough? Did it not warn him of increasing harm when it comes from people he had no blood relations with? Absolutely not, because these harmful consequences were not considered by him. Almighty Allah had commanded him to deliver the message, and that was enough. He remembered the day when the intransigence of his community increased and he went home covering himself in bed In sorrow. He heard the voice of heaven reaching his heart, and immediately he heard the voice of revelation casting the same matter as on the day of the cave:

O you covered up ˹in your clothes˺! (74:1) Arise and warn ˹all˺. (74:2).

Then he had to deliver the message and warn. Therefore, he was a Messenger who did not care about harm and did not search for comfort. Let him go then to Al-Ṭāʾif to convey the word of Allah to its people. There, however, the nobles of the community surrounded him and were more cunning than their mates in Makkah. They set children and hooligans against him, and they abandoned the most sacred of the customs of the Arabs, which is hospitality to guests and protection of the one who asks for help.

They set their hooligans and their young boys after the Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam), throwing stones at him. This was the one for whom the Quraish offered to collect money to make him the richest among them and to be their leader and king! Yet, he refused saying, “I am but the slave of Allah and His Messenger.”

Now we behold him in Al-Ṭāʾif where he retired to an orchard to be protected by its walls from the pursuit of the hooligans. His right hand was stretched towards heaven praying to Allah while his left hand was protecting his face from the stones thrown at him. He was calling to his Creator and Lord, saying, “If You are not angry with me, I do not care for other things, but granting me Your mercy is too generous of You”.

Indeed, he was a Messenger who knew how to address his Lord with courtesy! When he declared that he did not care about harm for the sake of Allah, he also declared that he was In dire need of mercy granted by Allah. In a situation like this, he did not feel proud of his endurance and courage, nor did he boast. Boasting in such a situation might suggest bestowing favour on Allah, and this fact could not be hidden from Muhammad. Therefore, the best way to express his courage and endurance in such a situation was his pleading and his invocation.

So he went on asking Allah’s pardon and invoking Him, “O Allah, to You I complain of the weakness of my strength, my inability to find a way, and my humiliation by the people. O the Most Compassionate, You are the Lord of the weak, and You are my Lord. To whom do You entrust me? To a distant relation who ignores me or to an enemy who has power over me? If You are not angry with me, I do not care about other things, but granting me Your mercy is too generous of You. I seek refuge in the light of Your face that brightens the darkness and amends the affairs of this world and the next. Do not be angry or dissatisfied with me. I beg Your favour until You are satisfied with me. There is no strength or power except through You.”

What loyalty the Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) had to his call! He was an unarmed person faced with plots everywhere he went. He had nothing in life to strengthen him, yet he carried all that persistence, all that steadfastness and loyalty! People beheld him returning from Al-Ṭāʾif to Makkah without any sense of despair or defeat, but more hopeful, optimistic, and dedicated. Moreover, he presented himself to the tribes, reaching them in their own localities and districts.

One day he went to Bani Kindah, another day to Bani Haniifah, then to Bani Aamir, and thus from one tribe to another. He said to them all, “I am the Messenger of Allah to you. He commands you to worship Allah and not to take partners with Him, and to abandon what you worship of idols.” At the houses of the close-by tribes, Abu Lahab used to follow him, saying to the people, “Do not believe him, for he is calling you to what is false.”

People beheld the Messenger of Allah in such a critical situation seeking believers and assistants, but he was met with ingratitude and enmity. They saw him refusing any bargains and refusing to have a worldly price for faith.

In those scorching days, he presented himself to Bani Ibn Sasaah and sat with them speaking about Allah and reciting some of His words. They inquired, “Do you believe that if we supported you in your affair and then Allah raised you above those who opposed you, we would take the matter after you?” He (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) answered saying, “This matter is in the hands of Allah. He puts it wherever He wishes.” There and then they dispersed, saying, “We need not your affair.” The Messenger (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) left them, looking for believers who do not buy a little worth with their faith.

To be continued———

This story is taken from a Book called “Men & Women Around the Messenger” By Khaalid Muhammad Khaalid & Dr . Abdel – Hamid Eliwa