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harmful. O Allâh let it be rain of mercy and not rain of torture and chastisement. Let that
rain not be destructive or floody. O Allâh send us down water and help to fight the
enemies.”
12. Najran’s Delegation: Najran is rather a big area of land. It was at a distance of seven trip
stages southwards of Makkah towards Yemen. It included seventy three villages. It took a
fast-rider one day ride to get there. Its military forces consisted of a hundred thousand
fighters.
·
Their arrival was in the year 9 A.H. The delegation comprised sixty men. Twenty-four of
them were of noble families. Three out of twenty-four were at one time leaders of Najran.
Al-‘Aqib
, i.e. who was in charge of princehood and government affairs. His name was ‘Abdul
Maseeh. The second was
As-Saiyid
(the Master) under whose supervision were the
educational and political affairs; his name was Al-Aiham or Sharhabeel. Abu Haritha bin
‘Alqamah was the third. He was a bishop to whom all religious presidency and spiritual
leadership belonged and were his charge.
When that group of delegates arrived in Madinah, they met the Prophet (Peace be upon
him), exchanged inquiries with him; but when he called them to Islam and recited the
Qur’ân to them, they refused. They asked him what he thought about ‘Isa (i.e. Jesus),
(Peace be upon him), he (Peace be upon him) tarried a whole day till the following Qur’ânic
reply was revealed to him:
·
“Verily, the likeness of Jesus before Allâh is the likeness of Adam. He created him
from dust, then (He) said to him: ‘Be!’ — and he was. (This is) the truth from your
Lord, so be not of those who doubt. Then whoever disputes with you concerning him
(Jesus) after (all this) knowledge that has come to you, (i.e. Jesus being a slave of
Allâh, and having no share in Divinity) say: [O Muhammad (Peace be upon him)]
‘Come, let us call our sons and your sons, our women and your women, ourselves
and yourselves — then we pray and invoke (sincerely) the Curse of Allâh upon those
who lie.” [3:59-61]
When it was morning, the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) told them what ‘Iesa
(Jesus) was in the light of the recently revealed verses. He left them a whole day to consult
and think it over. So when it was next morning and they still showed disapproval to admit
Allâh’s Words about ‘Isa or to embrace Islam, the Prophet suggested
Al-Mubahala
that is
each party should supplicate and implore Allâh to send His Curse upon him or them if they
were telling lies. After that suggestion of his, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) came forward
wrapping Al-Hasan and Al-Husain under his garment whereas Fatimah was walking at his
back. Seeing that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) was serious and prepared to face them
firmly, they went aside and started consulting.
Al-‘Aqib
and
As-Saiyid
(i.e. the Master) said
to each other: “We shall not supplicate. For, I swear by Allâh, if he is really a Prophet and
exchanges curses with us, we will never prosper nor will the descendants of ours.
Consequently neither us nor our animals will survive it.” Finally they made their mind to
resort to the Messenger of Allâh’s judgement about their cause. They came to him and said:
“We grant you what you have demanded.” The Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) then
admitted that agreement and ordered them to pay
Al-Jizya
(i.e. tribute) and he made peace
with them for the provisioof two thousand garments, one thousand of them to be delivered
in Rajab, the other thousand ones in Safar. With every garment they had to pay an ounce
(of gold). In return they will have the covenant of Allâh and His Messenger. He gave them a
covenant that provides for practicing their religious affairs freely. They asked the Prophet
(Peace be upon him) to appoint a trustworthy man to receive the money agreed on for
peace, so he sent them the trustworthy man of this nation
Abu ‘Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah to
receive the amounts of money agreed on in the peace treaty.
By the time Islam started to spread in Najran, naturally, they did not have to pay
Al-Jizya
that usually non-Muslims paid. Whatever the case was, it was said that
Al-Aqib
and
As-
Saiyid
embraced Islam as soon as they reached Najran on their journey back home. It is
also said that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) sent to them ‘Ali too, for the collection of
charities and tribute.
13. Bani Haneefa Delegation: They arrived in Madinah in the ninth year of Al-Hijra. They were
17 in number and included the Master of Liars, Musailima bin Thumamah bin Kabeer bin
Habeeb bin Al-Harith of Bani Haneefa The group of delegates were housed in a Helper’s
house. They came to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and declared their Islamization. As
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