I Am
the Prophet,
No Lying

To whom belongs Godhead?

To whom belongs Lordship?

To whom belongs Worship?

To Allah1,
the One, the Almighty Alone, Who has no partner or associate. This is belief. This
is religion. This is Islam.

To attribute partners instead of or besides Allah is Shirk2 and clear disbelief.

Either Godhead and
Lordship are declared to Allah exclusively, which means submission to Allah Alone,
worship of Allah Alone, obedience to Allah Alone, and following the Law of
Allah Alone without any partner; for He Alone is the One Who lays down for
people the laws, the standards, the codes of their lives, and the systems of
their societies.

No part of this right is permissible for any other than Him,
whether individuals or groups, unless based upon the Law of Allah. This right
exclusively appertains to Godhood and stands as its most prominent, distinctive
sign.

 

Or Godhead and Lordship are claimed to belong to a
creature of Allah (either as a partner with Him or entirely instead of Him),
which is submission to other than Allah, worship of other than Allah, and obedience
to other than Allah by following the codes, systems, laws, values, and
standards laid down by humans, without founding them on the Book of Allah and
His Authority. Rather, they found them on other bases from which they derive
their own authorities. This means no religion, no belief, no Islam, but rather Shirk,
disbelief, disobedience, and rebellion.3

Islam Striving

Jahiliyyah (Pre-Islamic Days of
Ignorance of Allah) is not a past epoch of history. Jahiliyyah is every
doctrine that embodies the worship of humans by humans, by people submitting to
human-made beliefs and laws.

Islam is the only law of life that frees humanity from
worshiping humans, because people receive all beliefs and laws from the Hand of
the All-Merciful King.

When they bow their heads, they are bowing them to Allah Alone.
When they obey the laws, they are obeying Allah Alone. When they submit to
systems, they are submitting to Allah Alone. They are truly freed from the
worship of slaves by slaves like them, when they become Slaves of Allah Alone,
without partner.4

This is Islam. Once it truly touches the human heart, it brings
a total turnabout in beliefs, feelings, way of life, and relationships between the
individual and groups. It is a turnabout based on full equality between all
humans; none is superior over the other except by piety. It is based on dignity
for all and absolute justice that tolerates no injustice and endures no wrong.

Once the human feels the heat of this faith, they, with their whole
being, move to fulfill it in their actual life. They can no longer tolerate falsehood,
silence, or inaction.

The positive-directing spiritual energy of true faith, once it
settles within human conscience, strives to realize itself outside in the form
of righteous deeds. It cannot remain dormant and motionless inside, but must
show signs of its life in the self of the believer; otherwise, it is false or
dead. 5

The people of Quraish
realized the true nature of this Call. They knew that the Testimony of Faith, “There
is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah” was a
declaration of mutiny against all human dominion and an escape to the Godhead
and Dominion of Allah Alone.

To them Islam was the breaking-free force that accompanied the
pronunciation of this Testimony of Faith. The force of pulling oneself away
from the community of Jahiliyyah, together with its beliefs, leadership,
power, and laws, and pledging oneself body and soul to the leadership of the
Islamic Call and the Muslim league that wanted to realize submission to Allah
Alone in the actual world.

That was the gravity of the Testimony of Faith in the eyes of the
Quraish community, who witnessed and felt the danger they posed on their own
entity and on the social, political, economical, and doctrinal status upon
which that entity was based.

That was what truly troubled the people of Quraish, planting a
nightmare of unrest in their minds from the spread of Islam, from this Qur’an.6

Therefore, the disbelievers of Quraish hungered to silence the
advocate of the new Call once and for all. An obstinate obstacle stood in their
way, embodied in Abu Talib, the Prophet’s uncle, and the powerful social
standing he enjoyed, along with the protection and support he secured for his
nephew.

Thus, the Mushrikin approached Abu Talib and insisted
that he should either stop his nephew or not interfere between them and him; otherwise,
this would embroil him in severe hostilities.7

Even if they put the sun and moon in my hands

Abu Talib was deeply distressed at this
open threat and the imminent breach with his people and their enmity, but still
he could not desert Muhammad r.

He sent for his nephew and told him his people’s threat. “Spare
me and yourself and put not a burden on me that I cannot bear,” he said to
him.

Muhammad r
understood his uncle to be deserting him and withdrawing his support, so he r
uttered his memorable words of unshakable adherence to faith, unsurpassable in
sincerity, flowing with singular loyalty to the Religion of Allah: “O my
uncle! By Allah, if they put the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left
hand on condition that I abandon this cause, I will never abandon it until
Allah makes it prevail or I perish therein.”

The Messenger of Allah r was overcome with tears.
He r
wept and then rose up. While leaving, his uncle called him back, saying, “Come
back my nephew.” When he r approached, Abu Talib
said, “Go and preach what you please. By Allah, I will never desert you.”8

The Quraish realized that Abu Talib would never desert his
nephew and hand him over to them, even if this incurred their enmity.

They attempted another compromise, taking with them a youth
called ‘Amarah bin Al-Walid bin Al-Mughirah to exchange for his nephew who
opposed their ancestral religion, sowed dissension among people, and disparaged
their way of life, for them to kill, just a man for a man.

Abu Talib replied, “By Allah, what an evil bargain you are
making with me. You give me your son to feed him for you, and I give you my son
to kill him. This by Allah shall never be.”9

Boycott

The Mushrikin of Makkah started
to devise other plans. They formed an alliance to boycott Banu Hashim and Banu
Al-Muttalib. They decided not to have with them any sort of intermarriage,
transactions, social relations, even verbal contact, until they handed over to
them the Messenger of Allah r to kill.

A parchment imposing these merciless measures was written down and
hung inside the Ka‘bah:
“Never to accept any reconciliation with Banu Hisham, and never to be taken
by pity for them until they hand him over to be killed.”

Banu Hashim and Banu Al-Muttlib sided with Abu Talib when the Quraish
signed this unjust pact. They joined him, believers and disbelievers, in his
confinement in the mountain pass (Shi‘b of Abu Talib), all except Abu
Lahab.

It was a stifling siege that lasted for three years.

The Mushrikin used to buy whatever food commodities
entered Makkah to prevent any provisions from reaching them.

They tightened their grip on this siege so tightly that Muslims
and those besieged with them used to eat tree leaves and animal skins. Cries of
women and children suffering from hunger could be heard from outside the pass.

Under such a horrible siege, it was revealed to the Messenger
of Allah r
that Allah U
made termites eat the parts of the parchment that referred to oppression,
rupture of relations, and injustice, leaving only those parts bearing the Name
of Allah.

Abu Talib went to the Quraish and told them what the Messenger
of Allah r
had informed him. He contended that if his words proved untrue they would no
longer interfere between them and him; but if he r was telling the truth,
they should desist from the oppression and severance of relations they
exercised against them.

They went, opened the door of the Ka‘bah, and entered to
see the parchment, which they found completely eaten except for the words: “In
the Name of Allah.”10

The war of starvation and banishment failed, just as the
strategy of allurement by wealth and worldly supremacy before it, and so did
the strategy of abuse, slander, mockery, and denial. The disbelievers were left
with no other choice but to conspire to kill the Messenger of Allah r,
especially after the death of Abu Talib.

They weaved a plot to accomplish that end without subjecting
themselves to the reprisal of Banu Hashim. This conspiracy took place on the
Eve of the Hijrah [Prophet’s emigration from Makkah to Al-Madinah].

Assassination

On Thursday, Safar 26, the fourteenth
year of prophethood, (September
12, 622 A.C.) the Parliament of Makkah held its most serious
meeting ever. Delegates representing all the Quraishi tribes attended the
meeting to deliberate on a final plot that would take the life of the flag
holder of the Islamic Call.11

Proposals of expulsion from Makkah and imprisonment for life
were put forward and turned down. After a lengthy debate the arch criminal of
Makkah, Abu Jahl bin Hisham, suggested a grievous proposal, unanimously
accepted: they must assassinate the Messenger of Allah r.

Assassination by one man would expose the murderer and his
family to the reprisal of Banu Hashim. A difficulty that was soon solved by Abu
Jahl, who suggested that they should choose from every tribe a strong, highborn
youth, and hand to each youth a sharp sword. They all should aim at Muhammad r
and stab him with their swords, the strike of one man, and thus kill him. The
guilt of his shed blood would lie equally on all tribes. Thus Banu ‘Abd Manaf
would not be able to fight all their people and would accept blood money.12

To execute their devilish plan, the chiefs of Makkah had chosen
eleven men: Abu Jahl bin Hisham, Al-Hakam bin Abu Al-‘As, ‘Uqbah bin Abu
Mu‘ait, An-Nadr bin Al-Harith, Umaiyah bin Khalaf, Zama‘ah bin Al-Aswad,
Tu‘aimah bin ‘Adi, Abu Lahab, Ubai bin Khalaf, Nabih bin Al-Hajjaj, and his
brother Munbih bin Al-Hajjaj.13

(But
they plan, and Allah plans. And Allah is the Best of planners.)14 Angel Jibril
(Gabriel u)
was sent down to Prophet Muhammad r to reveal to him the
plot of Quraish and give him his Lord’s Permission to emigrate from Makkah to
Al-Madinah. He specified to him the time of Hijrah and told him not to
sleep that night in his usual bed.15

The Prophet r went to Abu Bakr t,
his head and face covered, at an hour that was not his usual expected visiting
time.

Abu Bakr t
said, “Let my father and mother be sacrificed for him. By Allah, he has not
come at this hour except for an urgent matter.”

The Messenger of Allah r came and asked permission
to enter, and he was allowed in.

The Messenger of Allah r entered and then said
to Abu Bakr t,
“Let those who are with you leave.”

Abu Bakr t
replied, “They are only your family; let my father be sacrificed for you, O
Messenger of Allah.”

The Messenger of Allah r said, “I have been
given permission to emigrate.”

Abu Bakr t
said, “Companionship, let my father be sacrificed for you, O Messenger of
Allah.”

The Messenger of Allah r said, “Yes.”16

The Messenger of Allah r used to sleep during
the early hours of the night after offering Isha’ (Night) Prayer, then
go after midnight to Al­-Masjid
Al­-Haram (the Sacred Mosque in Makkah) to spend the night there in prayer.

On that night the Messenger of Allah r
told ‘Ali bin Abu Talib t
to sleep in his bed, and cover himself with his green mantle, and assured him
that no harm would come to him.17

Besiegement

Under the cover of the darkness, when
silence prevailed and most people were asleep, the assassins stealthily came
and banded together at the door of the Prophet’s house, vigilantly watching
him, thinking him asleep, waiting for the moment he r
would rise and leave his house to pounce on him and execute their plot.

They were too confident of the success of their devilish plan.
They kept vigil all night long, laying a tight siege to the Prophet’s house and
waiting for the zero hour, forgetting that it is Allah, Alone, Who has full
power and control over all affairs. In His Hand is the dominion over
everything. He protects all, while against Him there is no protector.

The plot of the Quraish utterly failed. The Prophet r
came out of his house and made his way through them. He r
then took a handful of dust and started to sprinkle it over their heads after
Allah took away their sight, so they did not see him, while reciting18: (And We have set a
barrier before them, and a barrier behind them, and We have enshrouded them in
veils so that they cannot see.)19

Dust was placed on the head of every man among them. Then the
Prophet r
proceeded directly to the house of Abu Bakr t, who immediately
accompanied him and both set out by night.

Knowing that the Quraish would leave no stone unturned to find
him and that their eyes would be searching for him on the northern side,
towards Al-Madinah, the Prophet r took a road least
expected, lying south of Makkah towards Yemen.

Prophet Muhammad r traveled along the road
for five miles and then reached a mountain called Thawr that was high,
rough, rocky, and difficult to ascend, which he r climbed until his feet
got sore. Some said that he r walked on tiptoe along
the road to hide his footprints. The Prophet r and Abu Bakr t
then took refuge in a cave at its lofty peak, called Thawr Cave, where they stayed for three days.20

The besiegers, however, kept waiting for the zero hour at the
door of his house, when a man, who was not with them, approached them and
asked, “What are you waiting for here?”

They answered, “Muhammad.”

He said, “Allah has defeated you. By Allah, Muhammad came
out to you and left no man among you without placing dust over his head, and
then he set out after his goal. Can you not see what has happened to you?”

Every man then placed his hand over his head and found that on
it there was dust.21

Chase

The Quraish were mad with rage when
they found out that the person they had watched all night who was lying in the
Prophet’s bed was ‘Ali t,
not Muhammad r,
and they became certain of the Prophet’s escape.

They beat ‘Ali, dragged him to the Ka‘bah, and imprisoned
him for an hour in an attempt to find out the whereabouts of the Prophet r
and Abu Bakr t,
but to no avail.

They went to Abu Bakr’s house and stood at his door. Asma’ came
out to them. They asked her, “Where is your father, O daughter of Abu Bakr?”
She answered, “I do not know, by Allah, where is my father.” Whereupon,
Abu Jahl, who was vulgar and evil, lifted his hand high and slapped her face with
such force that her earring was cast off.22

The Quraish decided, in an urgent meeting, to use all possible
means to arrest the two men. All the ways out of Makkah were placed under
heavily armed surveillance. A prize of a hundred
camels was announced in return for
each of the two handed to the Quraish, dead or alive.

Horsemen, infantry, and trackers set off in hot pursuit,
spreading over the mountains, valleys, hills, and plains.23 The rapid,
feverish paces drew nearer and nearer until the pursuers reached the mouth of Thawr
Cave. Nothing stood in the way of finding their quarry but to look under their
feet.

But indeed, Allah U has full power and
control over everything. The pursuers were thrown into confusion when they saw
a spider web spun across the mouth of the cave. They said, “If he entered
therein, a spider web would not be across its mouth!”24

Do not grieve... Allah
is with us

In that difficult moment, Abu Bakr t
lifted his head and saw the feet of the pursuers above their heads.

Pitying his companion and his sacred Message, he said to the
Prophet r,
“If any of them looked down his feet, he would certainly see us.”

The Prophet r answered, “O Abu
Bakr, what do you think of two when Allah is their third?”25

Indeed, Allah U was with His Prophet r
all along the way. All material power was in the hands of his enemies, who
beset him on all sides; but Almighty Allah, the Best of Supporters, was by his
side.

To eternalize this great incident of Divine Support, glorious Ayat
were revealed giving a vivid account of the two Companions in the cave, and the
forces through which Allah made His Messenger r triumph. Allah U
says:

(If
you do not help him (Muhammad), Allah has already helped him when those who
disbelieved had driven him out (of Makkah), the second of the two. When they
were in the cave, and he said to his companion, “Do not grieve; indeed Allah is
with us.” Then Allah sent down His Sakinah (calmness, tranquility, peace) upon
him, and strengthened him with forces (angels) which you saw not, and made the
word of those who disbelieved the lowermost, while the Word of Allah that is
the uppermost. And Allah is Exalted in Might, All-Wise.)26

Allah, Alone, made Islam and Prophet Muhammad r
triumph. At the age of forty when Muhammad r declared his mission
from heaven, there was no political party, or royalty, and certainly no family
or tribe to back him up. His people – the Arabs, immersed in idolatry and
fetishism – were not by any means a docile people; they were no easy meat. They
were a very volatile people, given to internecine and fratricidal wars, subject
to all kinds of fierce sincerities.

For one man to singlehandedly wean such a people from idolatry
and fetishism required nothing short of a miracle. A miracle did happen. Allah Alone
could have made Islam and Muhammad r triumph with such flimsy,
gossamer support.27

It is Divine Victory. It is Allah U
fulfilling His Promise:

(Verily, We will indeed
make victorious Our Messengers.)28