In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The Mawaddah Association is pleased
to present to you glimpses from the lives of the Companions,
by Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha,
may Allah have mercy upon him.
‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl, may Allah be pleased with him.
He was in his late twenties
on the day the Prophet of Mercy proclaimed the call to guidance and truth.
He was among the most noble of Quraysh in status,
the wealthiest, and the most prestigious in lineage.
It would have been fitting for him to embrace Islam as his peers did,
such as Sa‘d Ibn Abi Waqqas and Mus‘ab Ibn ‘Umayr,
and others from the prominent houses of Makkah,
had it not been for his father.
And who, one might wonder, was this father?
He was the greatest tyrant of Makkah,
the primary leader of polytheism,
and the author of the torment
by whose brutality Allah tested the faith of the believers, yet they remained steadfast,
and by whose cunning He tested the sincerity of the certain, and they proved true.
He was Abu Jahl, and that is enough said.
Such was his father; as for him,
he was ‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl al-Makhzumi,
one of the renowned chieftains of Quraysh,
and one of its most prominent knights.
‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl found himself driven,
by virtue of his father’s leadership,
to oppose Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
He showed the Messenger the fiercest enmity,
inflicted the most grievous harm upon his Companions,
and poured upon Islam and the Muslims such torment
as brought joy to his father’s eyes.
When his father led the battle of polytheism on the day of Badr,
and swore by Allah and al-‘Uzza
that he would not return to Makkah
unless he defeated Muhammad,
and he descended upon Badr,
and stayed there for three days,
slaughtering camels, drinking wine,
and having singing girls play music for him—
when Abu Jahl led this battle,
his son ‘Ikrimah was the arm upon which he relied,
and the hand with which he struck.
But al-Lat and al-‘Uzza
did not answer Abu Jahl’s call,
for they could not hear,
nor did they grant him victory in his battle,
for they were powerless.
So he fell prostrate, slain before Badr,
and his son ‘Ikrimah saw him with his own eyes,
as the spears of the Muslims drank from his blood,
and he heard him with his own ears
as he let out his final cry,
which escaped his lips.
‘Ikrimah returned to Makkah
after leaving the corpse of the master of Quraysh at Badr,
for the defeat had rendered him unable
to retrieve it for burial in Makkah,
and his flight forced him to abandon it to the Muslims,
who cast it into the pit
along with dozens of the slain polytheists,
and heaped sand upon it.
From that day on,
‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl’s relationship
with Islam took a different turn.
For he had initially opposed it
out of zeal for his father,
but now he opposed it to avenge him.
Hence,
‘Ikrimah and a group of those whose
fathers were killed at Badr
fanned the flames of enmity
in the chests of the polytheists against Muhammad,
and stoked the embers of vengeance
in the hearts of the aggrieved among Quraysh,
until the battle of Uhud took place.
‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl went out to Uhud,
and brought with him his wife, Umm Hakim,
to stand with the women who were aggrieved
at Badr behind the lines,
and to beat the tambourines with them,
inciting Quraysh to fight,
and steadying its knights
should their souls suggest flight to them.
Quraysh placed on the right flank of its cavalry
Khalid Ibn al-Walid,
and on their left flank, ‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl.
Both polytheist knights performed
on that day a feat
that tipped the scales of Quraysh against Muhammad and his Companions,
and achieved for the polytheists a great victory,
which made Abu Sufyan say,
"This is for the day of Badr."
And on the day of the Trench,
the polytheists besieged the city
for many long days,
until ‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl’s patience ran out,
and he grew weary of the siege.
He spotted a narrow place in the trench,
spurred his horse into it, and crossed it,
followed by a few men behind him,
in a daring adventure
that cost ‘Amr Ibn ‘Abd Wudd al-‘Amiri his life,
while he himself was only saved by flight.
On the day of the Conquest,
Quraysh saw that it was no match for Muhammad and his Companions,
so it resolved to clear the path for him to Makkah.
It was helped in making this decision
by the knowledge that the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
had ordered his commanders not to fight anyone from the people of Makkah except those who fought them.
But ‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl and a group with him
defied the consensus of Quraysh,
and confronted the great army,
only to be defeated by Khalid Ibn al-Walid in a small skirmish,
in which some of them were killed,
while those who could flee did so.
Among the fugitives was ‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl.
At that point, ‘Ikrimah was left in a desperate plight,
for Makkah had become inhospitable to him after it submitted to the Muslims,
and the Messenger, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
had pardoned the past transgressions of Quraysh,
but he had excepted a few whom he named,
and ordered them to be killed even if they were found under the curtains of the Ka‘bah.
At the forefront of these individuals
was ‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl.
Therefore, he snuck out of Makkah in disguise,
and set his face toward Yemen,
for he had no refuge but there.
At that time, Umm Hakim,
the wife of ‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl,
and Hind bint ‘Utbah
went to the house of the Messenger of Allah, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
accompanied by ten women to pledge allegiance to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
They entered upon him,
and with him were two of his wives, his daughter Fatimah,
and some of the women of the family of ‘Abd al-Muttalib.
Hind spoke while veiled,
and said, "O Messenger of Allah,
praise be to Allah who has manifested the religion He chose for Himself.
I ask you to treat me with your kindness,
for I am a believing, affirming woman."
Then she unveiled her face and said,
"I am Hind bint ‘Utbah, O Messenger of Allah."
The Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to her,
"Welcome."
She said, "By Allah, O Messenger of Allah,
there was no house on the face of the earth more beloved to me to be humbled than your house,
but now I have reached the point
where there is no house on the face of the earth more beloved to me to be honored than your house."
The Messenger of Allah said,
"And even more than that."
Then Umm Hakim stood up,
the wife of ‘Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl,
and she embraced Islam and said,
"O Messenger of Allah,
‘Ikrimah has fled from you to Yemen,
fearing that you would kill him,
so grant him safety, may Allah grant you safety."
He, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said,
"He is safe."
She set out immediately in search of him,
accompanied by a Roman servant of hers.
When they had traveled far along the road,
the servant tried to seduce her,
so she kept him hopeful and stalled him
until she arrived at a tribe of Arabs,
and sought their help against him.
They bound him and kept him with them,
and she continued on her way
until she caught up with ‘Ikrimah at the seashore,
in the region of Tihamah,
where he was negotiating with a Muslim sailor to transport him,
and the sailor was saying to him,
"Be sincere, and I will transport you."
‘Ikrimah asked him,
"And how do I be sincere?"
He said,
"Say: I bear witness that there is no god but Allah,
and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah."
‘Ikrimah said,
"I have fled for no other reason than this."
While they were in that state,
Umm Hakim approached ‘Ikrimah,
and said,
"O cousin,
I have come to you from the best of people,
the most righteous of people,
and the most excellent of people,
from Muhammad Ibn ‘Abdullah.
I have sought safety for you from him, and he has granted it,
so do not destroy yourself."
He asked,
"Did you speak to him?"
She said, "Yes,
I spoke to him and he granted you safety."
She continued to reassure and comfort him
until he returned with her.
Then she told him the story of her Roman servant,
He passed by him and killed him before he could embrace Islam.
While they were at a place where they had stopped on the road,
‘Ikrimah wished to be alone with his wife,
but she refused him with the utmost firmness.
She said,
"I am a Muslim,
and you are a polytheist."
He was filled with astonishment and said,
"A matter that stands between you and being alone with me
is a grave matter indeed."
When ‘Ikrimah drew near to Makkah,
the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to his Companions,
"‘Ikrimah ibn Abi Jahl will come to you,
as a believer and a migrant.
Do not insult his father,
for insulting the dead hurts the living,
and it does not reach the dead."
It was only a short while
before ‘Ikrimah and his wife arrived
at the place where the Messenger of Allah was sitting.
Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
When the Prophet, may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him, saw him,
he sprang up toward him without his outer garment,
in his joy for him.
When the Messenger of Allah sat down,
‘Ikrimah stood before him and said,
"O Muhammad,
Umm Hakim has informed me that you have granted me safety."
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said,
"You have spoken the truth;
you are safe."
‘Ikrimah then asked,
"To what do you invite, O Muhammad?"
He replied,
"I invite you to testify
that there is no god but Allah,
and that I am the servant of Allah and His Messenger,
and to establish prayer and pay the zakat,"
until he had counted all the pillars of Islam.
‘Ikrimah said,
"By Allah, you have only invited to the truth,
and you have only commanded what is good."
Then he added,
"By Allah, you were among us,
before you invited to what you have invited to,
as the most truthful of us in speech."
Then he extended his hand and said,
"I bear witness that there is no god but Allah,
and I bear witness that you are His servant and His Messenger."
Then he said,
"O Messenger of Allah,
teach me the best thing I can say."
He replied,
"Say: I bear witness that there is no god but Allah,
and that Muhammad is His servant and His Messenger."
‘Ikrimah asked,
"And what then?"
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said,
"Say:
I call Allah to witness,
and I call those present to witness,
that I am a Muslim, a mujahid, and a migrant."
‘Ikrimah said that.
At this,
the Messenger, may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him, said to him,
"Today, you will not ask me for anything that I give to anyone
without me giving it to you."
‘Ikrimah said,
"I ask you to seek forgiveness for me for every enmity I showed you,
or any position in which I confronted you,
or any words I spoke to your face or behind your back."
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said,
"O Allah, forgive him for every enmity he showed me,
and every step he took toward a place where he intended to extinguish Your light.
And forgive him for what he said against my honor to my face,
or when I was absent from him."
‘Ikrimah’s face beamed with joy,
and he said,
"By Allah, O Messenger of Allah,
I will not spend any wealth
that I had spent in hindering people from the path of Allah,
but that I will spend double of it in the path of Allah.
And I will not engage in any battle in which I fought to hinder people from the path of Allah,
but that I will fight double of it in the path of Allah."
From that day on,
a brave knight joined the ranks of the call, active on the battlefields,
a worshiper, a night-prayer performer, and a reciter of the Book of Allah in the mosques.
He used to place the Mushaf on his face and say,
"The Book of my Lord, the speech of my Lord,"
while weeping out of fear of Allah.
‘Ikrimah remained true to the pledge he made to the Messenger.
The Muslims did not fight a battle after his conversion
but that he fought it with them,
and they did not go out on an expedition
but that he was in their vanguard.
On the day of Yarmouk,
‘Ikrimah rushed into battle
like one who is thirsty rushes to cold water on a scorching day.
When the distress became severe for the Muslims at one point,
he dismounted from his horse and broke the scabbard of his sword,
and plunged into the ranks of the Romans.
Khalid ibn al-Walid hurried to him and said,
"Do not do this, ‘Ikrimah,
for your death would be a heavy blow to the Muslims."
He replied,
"Leave me, O Khalid,
for you had a precedence with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
As for me and my father,
we were among the harshest of people against the Messenger of Allah.
So let me make amends for what has passed."
Then he said,
"I have fought the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, in many places,
and shall I flee from the Romans today?
That will never happen."
Then he called out to the Muslims,
"Who will pledge to die?"
His cousin al-Harith ibn Hisham pledged to him,
as did Dirar ibn al-Azwar,
along with four hundred Muslims.
They fought in defense of the tent of Khalid, may Allah be pleased with him, with the fiercest fighting,
and they defended him with the most noble defense.
When the Battle of Yarmouk concluded
with that decisive victory for the Muslims,
there were lying on the ground of Yarmouk
three mujahidin,
exhausted by their wounds.
They were:
al-Harith ibn Hisham,
‘Ayyash ibn Abi Rabi‘ah,
and ‘Ikrimah ibn Abi Jahl.
Al-Harith asked for water to drink.
When it was brought to him,
‘Ikrimah looked at it,
and said, "Give it to him."
When they brought it near him,
‘Ayyash looked at it,
and said, "Give it to him."
When they reached ‘Ayyash,
they found that he had already passed away.
When they returned to his companion,
they found that he had also joined him.
May Allah be pleased with them.
May He give them to drink from the Hawd al-Kawthar,
a drink after which they will never thirst,
thereafter,
and grant them the green gardens of Paradise,
where they will dwell
forever.
‘Ikrimah will come to you,
as a believer and a migrant.
Do not insult his father,
for insulting the dead hurts the living,
and it does not reach the dead.
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.
[The remaining lines are fragmentary/garbled in the source; translating as intended context:]
O poet,
praise them, for they are the best.
In their praise, how can we ever do them justice?