The King Who Believed
As the number of the Prophet's followers increased so the enemies of the
Muslims grew more and more angry. At last some of the Muslims
decided to go to another country in order to live in peace. It was only five
years since the Archangel Gabriel had first come to the Prophet (pbuh)
and two years since the Prophet (pbuh) had spoken out in public. The
Muslims asked the Prophet (pbuh) to allow them to leave Mecca. He
agreed, saying 'It would be better for you to go to Abyssinia. The king
there is a just man and it is a friendly country. Stay there until Allah
makes it possible for you to return. The Muslims prepared for the
journey. They decided to wait until night so that they could leave without
being seen. The first sixteen left Mecca and, after reaching the shore of
die Red Sea, crossed over to Abyssinia. Another eighty-three men and
nineteen women followed, all hoping to be welcomed by the king and
people of that country. This was the first hijrah, or migration, in Islam.
The Meccans were furious when they discovered that these Muslims
had secretly left the city for among them were the sons and daughters of
many of the leading families of Mecca. The anger of the Meccans was
even greater when they found out that the Muslims had been warmly
welcomed in Abyssinia. The leaders of Quraysh decided to send two men
to the Abyssinian king in hopes of persuading him to send the Muslims
back. These were 'Amr ibn al-'As, a very clever speaker, and „Abd Allah
ibn abi Rabi‟ah. Before they met this king, they gave each of his advisers
a gift, saying: 'Some foolish men from our people have come to hide in
your country. Our leaders have sent us to your ruler to persuade him to
send them back, so when we speak to the king about them, do advise him
to give them up to us.' The advisers agreed to do what the Meccans
wished.
Amr ibn al-'As and 'Abd Allah ibn abi Rabi'ah then went to the king
and presented him also with a gift, saying: 'Your Highness, these people
have abandoned the religion we have always followed in Mecca, but they
have not even become Christians like you.' The royal advisers, who were
also present, told the king that the Meccans had spoken the truth and that
he should send the Muslims back to their own people. At this, the king
became angry and said, 'No, by God, I will not give them up. Those who
have come to ask for my protection, settled in my country, and chosen me
rather than others, shall not be betrayed. I will summon them and ask
them about what these two men have said. If the Muslims are as the
Meccans say, I will give them up and send them back to their own people,
but if the Meccans have lied I will protect the Muslims.' 'Amr was very
upset by this for the last thing he wanted was for the king to hear what the
Muslims had to say. The king then sent for the Muslims. When they
entered, they did not kneel before him as was the custom of the
Abyssinians. 'Why do you not kneel before our king?' they were asked by
one of the advisors. 'We kneel only to Allah', they replied. So the king
asked them to tell him about their religion.
Ja'far ibn abi Talib, Ali's brother and a cousin of the Prophet (pbuh),
was chosen to speak for the Muslims. He replied, '0 King, at first we were
among the ignorant. We and our ancestors had turned from the faith of
Abraham, who, with Ishmael, rebuilt the Ka‟bah and worshipped only
Allah. We used idols in our worship of Allah; we ate meat that had not
been killed in the right way; we did not respect the rights of our
neighbors; the strong took advantage of the weak. We did terrible things
of which I dare not speak. This was our life until Allah sent a Messenger
from among us, one of our relatives, whom we have always known to be
honest, innocent, and faithful. He asked us to worship only Allah, and to
give up the bad customs of our forefathers. He asked us to be truthful and
trustworthy, to respect and help our neighbors, to honor our families, and
to put a stop to our bad deeds and endless fighting. He asked us to look
after orphans. He ordered us not to slander or speak evil of women or
men.
He ordered us to worship Allah alone and not to worship anyone or
anything else alongside Him. He ordered us to pray, to give alms, and to
fast. We believe he is right and therefore we follow him and do as he has
commanded us.
The Meccans began to attack us and come between us and our
religion. So we had to leave our homes and we have come to you, hoping
to find justice.'
The king, who was a Christian, was moved by these words. „Amr had
to think quickly of a way to win the argument. Cunningly he said to the
king, 'These people do not believe in Jesus in the same way as you'. The
king then wanted to know what the Prophet (pbuh) had said about Jesus.
Ja'far replied by reciting a Surah from the Qur'an which tells the story of
Jesus and his mother Mary. These are a few of the lines he recited:
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
“And make mention of Mary in the Scripture, when she had
Withdrawn from her people to an eastern place, And had chosen
seclusion from them. Then We sent unto her Our spirit and it assumed for
her the likeness of a perfect man. She said: Lo! I seek refuge in the
Beneficent One from thee, if Thou fearest God. He said: I am only a
messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a faultless son. She
said: How can I have a son when no mortal hath touched me, neither have
I been unchaste? He said: 'Even so thy Lord saith: It is easy for Me. And
(it will be) that We may make of him revelation for mankind and a mercy
from Us, and it is a thing ordained. And she conceived him, and she
withdrew with him to a far place. Then she brought him to her own folk,
carrying him. They said: O Mary! Thou hast come with an monstrous
thing. Oh sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy
mother a harlot. Then Mary pointed to the child (Jesus); But they said,
'How can we speak to one who is still in the cradle, a young child?' He
said, 'Lo, I am Allah's servant; He has given me the Book, and made me a
Prophet.
He has made me Blessed, wheresoever I may be; and He has enjoined
me to pray, and to give alms, so long as I live, and likewise to cherish my
mother; he has not made me arrogant, unblest Peace be upon me, the day
I was born, and the day I die, and the day I am raised up alive!” (Qur'an
19:16-33) . When the king heard this, his eyes filled with tears. Turning
to his advisers, he said, 'These words have surely come from God; there is
very little to separate the Muslims from the Christians. What both Jesus
and Muhammad, the Messengers of Allah, have brought comes from the
same source.
So the Muslims were given the king's permission to live peacefully in
his country. 'Amr was given back the gift he had presented to the king
and the two Meccans returned home, bitterly disappointed.
As the number of the Prophet's followers increased so the enemies of the
Muslims grew more and more angry. At last some of the Muslims
decided to go to another country in order to live in peace. It was only five
years since the Archangel Gabriel had first come to the Prophet (pbuh)
and two years since the Prophet (pbuh) had spoken out in public. The
Muslims asked the Prophet (pbuh) to allow them to leave Mecca. He
agreed, saying 'It would be better for you to go to Abyssinia. The king
there is a just man and it is a friendly country. Stay there until Allah
makes it possible for you to return. The Muslims prepared for the
journey. They decided to wait until night so that they could leave without
being seen. The first sixteen left Mecca and, after reaching the shore of
die Red Sea, crossed over to Abyssinia. Another eighty-three men and
nineteen women followed, all hoping to be welcomed by the king and
people of that country. This was the first hijrah, or migration, in Islam.
The Meccans were furious when they discovered that these Muslims
had secretly left the city for among them were the sons and daughters of
many of the leading families of Mecca. The anger of the Meccans was
even greater when they found out that the Muslims had been warmly
welcomed in Abyssinia. The leaders of Quraysh decided to send two men
to the Abyssinian king in hopes of persuading him to send the Muslims
back. These were 'Amr ibn al-'As, a very clever speaker, and „Abd Allah
ibn abi Rabi‟ah. Before they met this king, they gave each of his advisers
a gift, saying: 'Some foolish men from our people have come to hide in
your country. Our leaders have sent us to your ruler to persuade him to
send them back, so when we speak to the king about them, do advise him
to give them up to us.' The advisers agreed to do what the Meccans
wished.
Amr ibn al-'As and 'Abd Allah ibn abi Rabi'ah then went to the king
and presented him also with a gift, saying: 'Your Highness, these people
have abandoned the religion we have always followed in Mecca, but they
have not even become Christians like you.' The royal advisers, who were
also present, told the king that the Meccans had spoken the truth and that
he should send the Muslims back to their own people. At this, the king
became angry and said, 'No, by God, I will not give them up. Those who
have come to ask for my protection, settled in my country, and chosen me
rather than others, shall not be betrayed. I will summon them and ask
them about what these two men have said. If the Muslims are as the
Meccans say, I will give them up and send them back to their own people,
but if the Meccans have lied I will protect the Muslims.' 'Amr was very
upset by this for the last thing he wanted was for the king to hear what the
Muslims had to say. The king then sent for the Muslims. When they
entered, they did not kneel before him as was the custom of the
Abyssinians. 'Why do you not kneel before our king?' they were asked by
one of the advisors. 'We kneel only to Allah', they replied. So the king
asked them to tell him about their religion.
Ja'far ibn abi Talib, Ali's brother and a cousin of the Prophet (pbuh),
was chosen to speak for the Muslims. He replied, '0 King, at first we were
among the ignorant. We and our ancestors had turned from the faith of
Abraham, who, with Ishmael, rebuilt the Ka‟bah and worshipped only
Allah. We used idols in our worship of Allah; we ate meat that had not
been killed in the right way; we did not respect the rights of our
neighbors; the strong took advantage of the weak. We did terrible things
of which I dare not speak. This was our life until Allah sent a Messenger
from among us, one of our relatives, whom we have always known to be
honest, innocent, and faithful. He asked us to worship only Allah, and to
give up the bad customs of our forefathers. He asked us to be truthful and
trustworthy, to respect and help our neighbors, to honor our families, and
to put a stop to our bad deeds and endless fighting. He asked us to look
after orphans. He ordered us not to slander or speak evil of women or
men.
He ordered us to worship Allah alone and not to worship anyone or
anything else alongside Him. He ordered us to pray, to give alms, and to
fast. We believe he is right and therefore we follow him and do as he has
commanded us.
The Meccans began to attack us and come between us and our
religion. So we had to leave our homes and we have come to you, hoping
to find justice.'
The king, who was a Christian, was moved by these words. „Amr had
to think quickly of a way to win the argument. Cunningly he said to the
king, 'These people do not believe in Jesus in the same way as you'. The
king then wanted to know what the Prophet (pbuh) had said about Jesus.
Ja'far replied by reciting a Surah from the Qur'an which tells the story of
Jesus and his mother Mary. These are a few of the lines he recited:
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
“And make mention of Mary in the Scripture, when she had
Withdrawn from her people to an eastern place, And had chosen
seclusion from them. Then We sent unto her Our spirit and it assumed for
her the likeness of a perfect man. She said: Lo! I seek refuge in the
Beneficent One from thee, if Thou fearest God. He said: I am only a
messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a faultless son. She
said: How can I have a son when no mortal hath touched me, neither have
I been unchaste? He said: 'Even so thy Lord saith: It is easy for Me. And
(it will be) that We may make of him revelation for mankind and a mercy
from Us, and it is a thing ordained. And she conceived him, and she
withdrew with him to a far place. Then she brought him to her own folk,
carrying him. They said: O Mary! Thou hast come with an monstrous
thing. Oh sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy
mother a harlot. Then Mary pointed to the child (Jesus); But they said,
'How can we speak to one who is still in the cradle, a young child?' He
said, 'Lo, I am Allah's servant; He has given me the Book, and made me a
Prophet.
He has made me Blessed, wheresoever I may be; and He has enjoined
me to pray, and to give alms, so long as I live, and likewise to cherish my
mother; he has not made me arrogant, unblest Peace be upon me, the day
I was born, and the day I die, and the day I am raised up alive!” (Qur'an
19:16-33) . When the king heard this, his eyes filled with tears. Turning
to his advisers, he said, 'These words have surely come from God; there is
very little to separate the Muslims from the Christians. What both Jesus
and Muhammad, the Messengers of Allah, have brought comes from the
same source.
So the Muslims were given the king's permission to live peacefully in
his country. 'Amr was given back the gift he had presented to the king
and the two Meccans returned home, bitterly disappointed.
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