Tyrants of Quraysh and the mission of the Prophet
- Updated On Sunday, 27 July 2014
- Written by Allamah Qurashi
- Editor Faisal Shaheen
- Supervisor Sayyed Roohullah Musavi
- Published on Wednesday, 07 May 2014
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- Hits: What did the Prophet face in the way of his mission from the tyrants of Quraysh?
The people of Quraysh were terrified by the Prophet's mission. Their life was troubled, and hatred spread in their houses, for some of their children, wives, and slaves became Muslims. As for slaves and the disabled, the Prophet (a.s.) opened to them new horizons of freedom, honor, and dignity, and brought them good news that they would be masters, and the tyrants of Quraysh would submit to them. Thus, troubles, upsets, and disputes were in all of the houses of Mecca. The people of Quraysh agreed on resisting and standing against the Prophet (a.s.) with all means of severity and violence they had. Quraysh was unable to bear Islam at all. They tried their best to do away with it by all means that we mention some of them below: A- Mocking At the beginning of the mission, the people of Quraysh began mocking at the Prophet (a.s.) Here, we mention the men who mocked at the Prophet (a.s.): 1. Al-Waleed bin al-Mughirah 2. Al-Aas bin Wa'il 3. Al-Aswad bin Abd Yaghuth He scorned and mocked the Prophet (a.s.) and his companions. Whenever he saw the Prophet (a.s.), he said to him mockingly: "Have you been talked to by the heaven today?" He said when he saw the Prophet's companions: "The kings of the earth have come!" He said that because the Prophet's companions were with poor clothes and their living was very simple. 4. Al-Harith 5. Al-Aswad bin al-Harith B- Hurting and insulting There was another group from Quraysh who wronged and hurt the Prophet (a.s.). They were too severe with him. Here, we mention some of them: 1. Abu Jahl He was one of the bitterest enemies to the Prophet (a.s.). He was filled with grudge and enmity against the Prophet (a.s.). Abdullah bin Mas'ud said: "Once, we were with the messenger of Allah in the mosque while he was offering prayer. Abu Jahl said to his fellows: "Can anyone of you bring the placenta of the camel of so-and-so and throw it on the shoulders of Muhammad when he is prostrating? Uqbah bin Abi Ma'eet fetched the placenta and threw it on the Prophet (a.s.) while he was prostrating. No one of the Muslims, who were in the mosque, could remove the placenta from the Prophet's back because of their weakness and inability to stand against the Prophet's enemies at that time. Someone went to Fatima (a.s.) and told her what happened to her father. She came, removed the filth from her father's back, and washed his body. One day, the Prophet (a.s.) was in the Thil Majaz Bazaar inviting people to embrace Islam and saying: "Say: "there is no god but Allah. and you shall be successful." Abu Jahl was behind him throwing earth on him and saying to people: "Let this one not cheat you against your religion! He just wants you to leave the worship of al-Lat and al-Uzza (two idols)."1 Abu Jahl was the most spiteful one of those tyrants against whoever became a Muslim. whenever he knew that some man turned a Muslim, he went to him to scold him. If that new Muslim was a notable man in his tribe, he (Abu Jahl) said to him: "You have left the religion of your father who is better than you! We will confute your opinion, refute your belief, and degrade you." If he was a merchant, he said to him: "We will stagnate your trade and deaden your capitals." And if he was a helpless one, he punished him and incited others against him.2 2. Abu Lahab (the Prophet's uncle) Abu Lahab was one of the most spiteful enemies of the Prophet (a.s.) and the most daring and denying one against him. The Prophet (a.s.) suffered from him many torments. He threw filth on the Prophet's door because he was his neighbor. The Prophet (a.s.) removed the filth and said: "O children of Abd Manaf, what neighboring this is!" Abu Lahab's wife Umm Jameel, who was Abu Sufyan's sister, was not less than her husband in her enmity and grudge against the Prophet (a.s.). She often met the Prophet (a.s.) with abuse and revilement. When the Prophet (a.s.) invited people to the faith in Allah, Abu Lahab addressed the people of Quraysh saying loudly: "Let him not cheat you against your religion and the religion of your fathers."3 3. Uqbah bin Abi Ma'eet 4. Al-Hakam bin Abil-Aas 5. Umayyah bin Khalaf C- Inciting the children to harm the Prophet The people of Quraysh ordered their children and encouraged them to harm the Prophet (a.s.). They threw stones, soil, and ashes on him.Quraysh did that to be excused before Abu Talib that it was their little children, who could not be punished, and not them who were responsible for that. Imam Ali (a.s.), though very young then, accompanied the Prophet (a.s.) to protect him from the children. Imam Ali (a.s.) attacked the children so they ran away. D- Accusing the Prophet of madness Because the Prophet (a.s.) came with a new law unlike the habits and traditions of Quraysh, they accused him of madness, though he was the most knowledgeable of all mankind. They accused him of madness to frustrate his mission and prevent the public from following him and embracing his mission. E- Accusing the Prophet of magic The people of Quraysh accused the Prophet (a.s.) of being a magician, for he recited before them the miraculous verses of Allah that they could not keep up with, besides his wonderful maxims that attracted all hearts. F- Preventing praisers from coming to him The people of Quraysh were so spiteful toward the Prophet (a.s.) that they spent much monies to prevent poets like al-A'sha from coming to him. G- Preventing people from embracing Islam Quraysh tried the best to prevent those who were willing to be Muslims from embracing Islam. H- Persecuting the believers The tyrants of Quraysh wreaked their wrath on everyone that believed in the Prophet (a.s.) and became a Muslim. They pursued the weak and slaves who had no supporters that could protect them against the oppression of Quraysh. The men of Quraysh were excessive in harming and tormenting Muslims with unbearable kinds of torment, until some of them could not resist more and so they abandoned their religion. By the same token, some of them remained fixed and did not yield to the severe punishment of Quraysh. The Prophet (a.s.) invited Muslims to withstand and be patient with their affliction. As an example, the tyrants of Quraysh tortured Yasirs's family with unbearable torment. Yasir and his wife Summayah were martyred under the pressure of torment, and their son Ammar remained although he received heavy torment. He could bear no more. Consequently, Quraysh asked him to abuse the Prophet (a.s.), and he responded unwillingly and they set him free. He hurried to the Prophet (a.s.) crying and feeling very sad. He told the Prophet (a.s.) what he did, but the Prophet (a.s.) wiped his tears and said to him: "If they do again (punish you), you do the same (to abuse)." Bilal al-Habashi was another one from those who were tortured in the way of Islam. Umayyah bin Khalaf poured on him all kinds of torment. After leaving him hungry and thirsty for a day and a night, he took him out at midday and made him lie down on his back in the desert and ordered his men to put a heavy rock on his chest, and then he said to him: "It is so until you die or disbelieve in Muhammad and worship al-Lat and al-Uzza." He did not care for all that, but he said: He is One. He is One.4
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References: 1 Tareekh al-Islam, As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ath-Thahabi, p. 151. 2 As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 320. 3 Tareekh al-Islam, As-Seerah an-Nabawiyyah by ath-Thahabi, p. 151. 4 As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 1 p. 494.