In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The Mawaddah Association is pleased
to present to you:
"Portraits from the Lives of the Companions"
by 'Abd al-Rahman
Ra'fat al-Basha,
may Allah have mercy on him.
The Day of al-Raji'.
[Poetic prelude]
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Towards the end of the third year after the Hijrah,
there arrived in Yathrib
a delegation from Banu Khuzaymah feigning
Islam and outwardly professing
faith.
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, warmly
welcomed them and generously hosted
their delegation, and
the Companions rejoiced over them immensely,
making them feel entirely at home
and extending to them utmost hospitality.
Before the men of the delegation prepared
to depart back to their people,
they said, "O Messenger of Allah,
indeed among our people are many
who believe in Allah and His Messenger,
yet they have not been fortunate enough
to gain knowledge of Islam,
nor have they been illuminated by the light of faith.
If only you would send with us
a group of your Companions to recite to us
the Qur'an
and teach us the laws of Islam,
instructing us in the religion of Allah."
So the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
granted their request
and selected for them
six of the Ansar:
Marthad al-Ghanawi,
Khalid al-Laythi,
'Abdullah Ibn Tariq,
Zayd Ibn al-Dathinah,
Khubayb Ibn 'Adiy,
and 'Asim Ibn Thabit.
He instructed them to prepare to journey with them
and reside among them
until his further command reached them.
These six noble, righteous men
from the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, rejoiced
in the mission entrusted to them,
and their brethren envied them
for the great reward decreed for them.
And how could they not rejoice,
or not be envied?
For prior to this day,
they had enjoyed the merit of supporting
the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
and now added to that
the reward of emigrating
to propagate the religion of Allah.
The noble Messenger,
the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, bade farewell
to the group of six of his Companions,
counseling them to remain conscious of Allah
in secret and in public,
and appointed Marthad
al-Ghanawi as their leader.
Then their families and loved ones bid them farewell,
urging them to take care of themselves
and treat their companions well.
The guiding callers to Allah set out
alongside the delegation of Banu Khuzaymah,
leaving behind family and home,
parting with kinsfolk and homeland.
Yet none of that
weighed heavily upon them;
rather, what grieved them was parting from
the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
and being distant from him.
For they never imagined
they could endure
being away from him,
nor did they ever expect to part from him
as long as their lives endured.
The caravan pressed forward, hastening
its steps toward the settlements of Banu Khuzaymah,
situated near
'Usfan,
while the guiding callers traversed
the wilderness
to meet those eager to embrace the religion of Allah.
But when they reached the region of al-Raji',
they were ambushed by the most heinous
treachery—one so appalling
that hearts were torn to pieces by its atrocity
and souls were shattered
by its horror.
For the group from Banu Khuzaymah
that had come to the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah
be upon him,
had conspired with a clan from Banu Hudhayl
to lure into their trap
a number of the Companions of the Prophet,
peace and blessings be upon him,
and hand them over to them
in exchange for a handsome sum
they had agreed upon.
Banu Hudhayl
had two captives held by Quraysh,
and they resolved to ransom
with some of these Companions
their two captives detained in Makkah,
and then sell the remainder
to whoever among Quraysh desired them,
so they might execute them in revenge
for their fathers, sons,
or distinguished leaders who were slain
at Badr.
When the caravan drew near the region of al-Raji',
the six Companions,
may Allah be pleased with them, were shocked
to find their companions from Banu Khuzaymah
abandoning them,
while a band from Hudhayl closed in
upon them, brandishing
swords and spears,
encircling them as tightly as a shackle
around a wrist.
Thereupon, the six Companions
dismounted from the backs
of their riding beasts, drew
their swords from their scabbards,
and resolved to fight those
who had confronted them.
But the men of Hudhayl said to them,
"We are the masters of this territory;
our numbers are overwhelmingly
vast, whereas your band
is small and meager.
Moreover, by the Lord of the Ka'bah, we intend
you no harm, nor do we plan
to put you to death;
rather, we only wish
to gain something through you from the people of Makkah,
and for this you have
the covenant and pledge of Allah."
The six men from the Companions of the Messenger,
peace and blessings of Allah
be upon him, were cast into profound distress,
no longer knowing
what course to take.
Then Allah willed that they should take
two different paths in this ordeal:
for indeed,
'Asim Ibn Thabit al-Ansari,
Marthad al-Ghanawi,
and Khalid al-Laythi chose
certain death over surrendering
to the enemies of Allah and their own enemies.
They said to one another,
"By Allah, we shall never accept a pact from a polytheist,
nor shall we ever agree
to a pledge from him."
Then they sprang forward, fighting Hudhayl
with fierce determination
until they fell slain, one
after another,
passing away as martyrs within a few
numbered minutes.
As for the other three men
among the Companions of the Messenger, peace and blessings
be upon him—
namely, 'Abdullah Ibn Tariq,
Zayd Ibn al-Dathinah, and Khubayb Ibn 'Adiy—
they trusted the pledge of this treacherous
band of Hudhayl
and surrendered to them.
When Hudhayl realized
that one of the three slain
was 'Asim Ibn Thabit al-Ansari,
they rejoiced at his death with the greatest
joy; this was because
'Asim, may Allah be pleased with him,
had killed on the Day of Uhud
two brothers who were knights
of Quraysh.
Their mother, Sulafah bint Sa'd, had vowed
that if she ever gained power over 'Asim,
she would drink wine
from the skull of his head,
and she promised to whoever brought him to her alive
or dead whatever they wished
of precious wealth.
So the men of Hudhayl stepped toward 'Asim Ibn
Thabit to sever his head,
They were buoying themselves with hope
for a generous reward,
but they found that swarms of bees
and colonies of wasps
had surrounded his body on every
side.
When they attempted to approach him,
the insects fended them off.
Some said to others,
"Leave him until night falls,
when the bees
and wasps will depart from him.
Then, we will sever his head
and take it to Makkah."
No sooner had darkness descended
upon the region of al-Raji‘ and its surroundings
than the sky thundered,
surged,
and poured down rain like water from the mouths of skins.
A flood covered the valleys,
the likes of which had never been seen.
The flood carried ‘Asim away
and swept him to places
far away that had not been trodden
by their feet before.
They searched for him everywhere,
but could not find him.
They scoured every direction for him,
but could not track him down.
They returned, burning
with frustration at having lost him.
‘Asim,
may Allah be pleased with him,
had made a covenant with Allah, the Almighty and Majestic,
saying, "O Allah, may I not touch a polytheist,
for as long as I live."
And he asked Him, the Glorified,
not to allow any polytheist
a way to touch him.
Thus, Allah fulfilled for ‘Asim
what he had covenanted with Him,
and answered his prayer.
‘Umar Ibn al-Khattab,
may Allah be pleased with him, used to say,
"Allah protects the believing servant."
‘Asim had vowed
that no polytheist would touch him,
and that he would not touch a polytheist in his life;
Allah protected him even after his death,
just as he had remained protected from them during his life.
The Hudhayl tribe set off
with their three captives toward
Makkah, after
they had snatched away the swords
that they were wearing,
and seized the spears
that were in their hands.
Then they loosened their bowstrings
and bound them with them.
‘Abdullah Ibn Tariq looked
at the bonds with which the Hudhayl had bound them
and said,
"This is the first act of treachery."
He began to wait for an opportunity
to be able to free himself
from them.
When he saw them distracted,
he pulled his hands from his bonds
and attempted to release his companions,
Zayd Ibn al-Dathinah
and Khubayb Ibn ‘Adi, from their bonds.
However, the Hudhayl
noticed him,
and they did not approach him for fear of
his strength and ferocity.
They did not let him escape,
but instead began pelting him with stones
until they killed him.
They left him where he lay
and then moved on
with Zayd Ibn al-Dathinah and Khubayb
Ibn ‘Adi until they reached
Makkah and presented them
to the people.
The vengeful, hateful ones
among the disbelievers of Quraysh rushed forward,
each wanting to secure the two captives,
no matter how high the price,
to use them to spite
Muhammad, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and to take revenge on them
for those killed at Badr.
They competed in offering exorbitant
prices for them.
Then one of the leaders of Quraysh stood up
and said, "O people of
Quraysh, do not compete
over these two captives
and drive up their price.
Rather, leave them for those
who have a blood feud against them,
for they are more entitled to them than others
and more deserving of taking them
than anyone else."
Safwan Ibn Umayyah bought Zayd Ibn al-Dathinah,
may Allah be pleased with him,
for a high price,
to kill him in retaliation for his father, Umayyah Ibn Khalaf.
The sons of
al-Harith Ibn ‘Amir bought Khubayb,
may Allah be pleased with him,
to kill him in retaliation for their father,
whom he had killed at Badr.
They paid the Hudhayl
an exorbitant price.
Safwan Ibn Umayyah did not wait
long with his captive,
because of the hatred burning within his heart
for Muhammad,
may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
He hastened to satisfy
the thirst of Quraysh for revenge
against the noble Messenger, peace be upon him,
through his person,
and to gladden the eyes of his people
with the spectacle of his execution.
He had resolved to kill him in the area of
al-Tan‘im
and cast his body there
for the stray dogs to maul
and the birds of prey
to feast upon.
He set a time for this and announced it in Makkah.
No sooner had the morning of that appointed day
dawned in the valley of Makkah
than the vengeful ones
among the disbelievers of Quraysh,
those who hated Muhammad,
may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and his message,
and the rabble of men,
women, and children
were swarming in groups
toward the area of al-Tan‘im,
outside the boundaries of the Haram.
They were driving
their captive before them, shackled
in chains,
to kill him there in the sight
of the people.
At the head of all these people
was Abu Sufyan Ibn Harb.
They prepared Zayd Ibn al-Dathinah,
may Allah be pleased with him, for execution
and raised him on a high piece
of ground so that both old and young
could witness his death.
He faced death
with a steadfast heart and a
cheerful face.
Abu Sufyan Ibn Harb approached him
and said,
"I adjure you by Allah, O Zayd,
would you not love for Muhammad
to be in your place now,
and for his neck to be struck instead of yours,
so that we might set you free
to go safely and securely
to your family?"
Zayd smiled and said,
"By Allah, I would not love for even a thorn
to prick Muhammad and harm him,
while he is in the place
where he is now,
even if that meant I were set free
to be safe and secure
among my family."
The people’s anger intensified at his words,
and their shouting increased:
"Kill him!"
Abu Sufyan said,
"By Allah, I have never seen
anyone among the people love
anyone else as
the companions of Muhammad
love Muhammad." Then
they rushed upon him and broke his neck,
while he was testifying
that there is no god but Allah,
and that His Prophet and chosen one,
Muhammad, is the Messenger of Allah.
That was what happened
regarding the affair of Zayd Ibn al-Dathinah,
may Allah be pleased with him and grant him satisfaction.
As for his companion, Khubayb
Ibn ‘Adi, here is
his story. The family of
al-Harith kept Khubayb Ibn ‘Adi
in the darkness of a prison in their house,
And extended his imprisonment,
so he spent his days among them,
alternating between fasting and night prayers.
Whenever they looked at him,
the daughters and slave-girls of Al-Harith,
during the night or the day,
they found him to be either
bowing or prostrating,
or reciting the Book of Allah,
with his eyes overflowing
with tears, so their hearts softened
toward him,
and they almost forgot that he had killed
their father at Badr.
One of them narrated about him
after she embraced Islam,
saying, "Khubayb was detained
in our home,
and when the people resolved to kill him,
he asked me to give him a razor
to shave what is customary
for a Muslim to shave of his hair,
and to groom himself before being killed.
So I granted his request.
Then I became distracted from
a young toddler of mine,
who crawled toward him and sat
in his lap.
I was suddenly terrified to see the razor
in his hand while the boy
was sitting on his thigh!
What had I done?
Khubayb Ibn 'Adi could easily exact
his revenge by killing my child
before he himself was killed!
I panicked, and he saw the terror on my face,
so he turned to me
with tenderness and gentleness,
and said, 'Do you fear that
I would harm this child of yours?
By Allah, I would never do
such a thing.'
Then he added, saying,
'We, the community of Muslims, do not inflict
harm upon a young child,
or an elderly old man,
or a monk who has devoted himself
to worship.
Rather, we only fight those who aggress against us
and strive to drive us out
from our religion.'
She then said, 'By Allah,
I do not think there was ever a prisoner on the face
of the earth better than Khubayb.
By Allah, I saw him
eating from a large cluster
of grapes, the likes of which my eyes
had never seen before,
while there were no grapes to be eaten
anywhere in the land of Allah at that time!
And Khubayb at that time was
bound in iron chains,
so these grapes were nothing less than
sustenance that Allah had granted
him.'
And when the sons of Al-Harith resolved to
execute Khubayb Ibn 'Adi,
and announced it among the people,
all of Mecca marched out,
every last one of them, to the area of Al-Tan'im
to witness the execution
of their second captive.
When Quraysh brought him forward for execution,
he said to their leaders,
'If you see fit to allow me
to pray two rak'ahs, then do so.'
One of them felt pity
for him and said,
'Go ahead and pray two rak'ahs.'
So Khubayb performed two rak'ahs,
completing them fully and perfectly.
Then he turned to
the people and said,
'By Allah, were it not that you might think
I only prolonged my prayer out of dread
of being killed,
I would have prayed much more.'
The people raised Khubayb Ibn 'Adi
up to the crucifixion pole
and bound him securely to it.
When they prepared to kill him,
he said, 'O Allah,
we have conveyed the message
of Your Prophet, so convey to him
this morning what is being done to us.'
Then he supplicated against the polytheists
of Quraysh, saying:
'O Allah, count the disbelievers
of Quraysh in number,
destroy them piecemeal,
and leave not a single one of them.'
When Abu Sufyan heard
his supplication,
he threw his son Mu'awiyah to the ground
out of fear of his invocation,
as the Arabs used to do
in the Jahiliyyah.
Then they executed him,
and Khubayb joined his five brothers
who had preceded him,
passing on to his Lord,
well-pleased and pleasing to Him.
'May Allah send blessings upon those who
followed one another
on the day of Al-Raji',
so they were honored and rewarded.'
Hassan Ibn Thabit.