In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
Treasures of the Seerah.
The Conversion of Hamzah and 'Umar,
May Allah be pleased with them both.
Divine victory came from Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, through the conversion of two men.
As for the first,
he was Hamzah,
the paternal uncle of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him),
and his foster brother,
for Thuwaybah, the freed slave of Abu Lahab, had breastfed them both.
The reason for his conversion
was that Abu Jahl, the enemy of Allah,
passed by the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
while he was near al-Safa,
and he abused and insulted him,
while the Messenger of Allah
remained silent and did not speak to him.
Then Abu Jahl stood up,
picked up a stone,
and struck the Prophet's head with it,
fracturing his skull so severely that blood poured forth.
He then walked away to the assembly of Quraysh
and sat with them.
A freed bondwoman belonging to 'Abdullah ibn Jud'an had witnessed that.
So when Hamzah returned from hunting, carrying his bow slung over his shoulder,
this bondwoman approached him
and told him what she had seen,
and what Abu Jahl had done
to the Prophet (peace be upon him).
Hamzah (may Allah be pleased with him) was filled with rage;
he was a formidable man,
in the prime of his youth,
and among the bravest of Quraysh at that time,
and Muhammad was his nephew.
So he set out swiftly
until he reached Abu Jahl.
Upon entering,
he stood towering over his head and said to him:
"Do you dare revile my nephew when I follow his religion?!"
He then cursed him and struck him with his bow,
inflicting a terrible, hideous gash on his face.
Men from the Banu Makhzum—Abu Jahl’s clan—rose in anger,
and men from Banu Hashim rose in defense of Hamzah,
until it was on the verge of turning into
an all-out battle between the two clans.
But Abu Jahl intervened, saying:
"Leave Abu 'Umarah alone,
for indeed, I reviled his nephew
most abhorrently."
Hamzah (may Allah be pleased with him) recounted:
"When I left,
I began to reflect upon the matter,
and I said to myself:
'How could I say, "I follow his religion,"
when I have not yet embraced Islam?!'"
But it was not long before Allah,
the Blessed and Exalted, opened his heart to Islam.
So he went to the Prophet (peace be upon him)
and said:
"O son of my brother,
I have said such-and-such,
so what should I do?"
Thereupon, the Prophet prayed for him
that Allah would open his heart to Islam,
and Allah, Exalted and Majestic, expanded his chest, and he embraced Islam.
His conversion was a great victory for the believers.
The second victory
was 'Umar ibn al-Khattab.
For it has been authentically established
that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
"O Allah, strengthen Islam
with whichever of these two men is more beloved to You:
with Abu Jahl or with 'Umar ibn al-Khattab."
And the more beloved of the two to Him was 'Umar.
There are multiple narrations regarding the story of his conversion,
but the one closest to authenticity
is that 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
"I went out to intercept the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
before I embraced Islam,
and I found that he had preceded me to the mosque.
So I stood behind him,
and he began reciting Surah al-Haqqah.
The Prophet went on reciting,
and I listened, captivated by its exquisite composition.
I said to myself:
'By Allah, he is a poet, just as Quraysh say!'
Then he recited:
'That this is indeed the word of an honored messenger,
“It is not poet's speech - little is it that ye believe!” (69:41)
Little do you believe!'
Then I said to myself: 'A soothsayer!'
Whereupon he recited:
'Nor is it the word of a soothsayer;
Little do you take heed!
It is a revelation from the Lord of the worlds.'
At that moment, Islam penetrated my heart."
When 'Umar embraced Islam,
he approached a man known as Jamil ibn Ma'mar,
who was notorious for spreading talk,
unable to keep any secret.
'Umar said to him:
"I wish to tell you something."
He asked: "And what is that?"
'Umar replied:
"I have embraced Islam."
The man immediately jumped up
and shouted at the top of his voice:
"Ibn al-Khattab has apostatized!"
while 'Umar ibn al-Khattab was chasing behind him, saying:
"He lies!
Rather, I have embraced Islam!"
The people rushed at 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him),
beating him while he fought back against them,
and this continued until the sun rose high in the sky.
Some narrations even mention
that they beat him until he fell unconscious from the severity of their blows.
On the authority of 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:
"We were never able to pray at the Ka'bah
until 'Umar embraced Islam."
He also said:
"We have never ceased to enjoy honor and dignity ever since 'Umar embraced Islam."
Treasures of the Seerah:
The Testimony of Enemies.
Al-Akhnas ibn Shariq went to visit Abu Jahl
and said to him:
"I am going to ask you something, so be truthful with me,
for there is no one here to overhear us."
Abu Jahl replied:
"Ask whatever you wish."
He asked:
"Is Muhammad truthful, or is he a liar?"
Abu Jahl said:
"Woe to you!
By Allah, Muhammad is indeed truthful,
and Muhammad has never lied in his entire life!
But if Banu Qusayy claim both the providing of water, the feeding of pilgrims, and now prophethood,
what then remains for the rest of Quraysh?
We and the clan of Banu 'Abd Manaf have always rivaled one another for nobility:
they fed others, so we fed others;
they gave generously, so we gave generously;
they bore debts and burdens, so we bore debts and burdens;
until, when our knees met side by side
and we ran neck and neck like racehorses,
they declared: 'A prophet has arisen from among us!'
How could we ever match that?!
No, by Allah, we will never believe in him!"
It is truly as the saying goes:
"True pride is that to which even enemies bear witness."
Treasures of the Seerah:
'Utbah ibn Rabi'ah Attempts to Negotiate with the Prophet.
'Utbah ibn Rabi'ah was sitting in the assembly of Quraysh,
while the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was sitting alone in the mosque.
'Utbah said:
"O assembly of Quraysh!
Shall I not go to Muhammad and speak with him,
presenting certain offers to him so that he might accept some of them,
so that we may give him whatever he desires, and he will cease bothering us?"
They replied:
"Certainly, O Abu al-Walid!
Go to him and speak with him."
So 'Utbah rose and went to him,
sat down beside him, and said:
"O son of my brother,
you know well the esteemed standing you hold among us,
yet you have brought a momentous, divisive matter to your people:
with it, you have shattered their unity,
insulted their intellect,
disparaged their deities and their religion,
and declared their deceased ancestors to be disbelievers.
So listen to me while I present some proposals to you;
consider them, so that you may perhaps accept some of them."
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
"O Abu al-Walid,
speak, and I will listen."
He said:
"O son of my brother,
if what you seek by this enterprise is wealth,
we will gather so much of our wealth for you
that you will become the wealthiest among us.
If you seek prestige and nobility,
we will make you our chieftain, deciding no matter without your consent.
If you seek royal dominion,
we will crown you king over us.
And if what comes to you is a spirit possession or vision that you perceive,
which you cannot repel from yourself,
we will seek medical treatment for you
and spend our fortunes until we have you cured;
for sometimes a spirit overpowers a person until he is treated."
He continued speaking while the Prophet remained silently listening.
When he finished,
the Prophet (peace be upon him) asked him:
"Have you finished, O Abu al-Walid?"
He said: "Yes."
He said: "Then listen to me."
He said: "I will."
Then the Prophet recited:
"Ha, Meem.
“A revelation from the Beneficent, the Merciful,” (41:2)
“A Scripture whereof the verses are expounded, a Lecture in Arabic for people who have knowledge,” (41:3)
A bringer of good tidings and a warner...
“Good tidings and a warning. But most of them turn away so that they hear not.” (41:4)
“And they say: Our hearts are protected from that unto which thou (O Muhammad) callest us, and in our ears there is a deafness, and between us and thee there is a veil. Act, then. Lo! we also shall be acting.” (41:5)
“And they say: Our hearts are protected from that unto which thou (O Muhammad) callest us, and in our ears there is a deafness, and between us and thee there is a veil. Act, then. Lo! we also shall be acting.” (41:5)
So work; indeed, we are working."
When the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, reached
the place of prostration in Surah Fussilat,
“But if they are too proud - still those who are with thy Lord glorify Him night and day, and tire not.” (41:38)
"and they do not grow weary,"
he prostrated, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
Then he raised his head and said,
"You have heard, O Abu al-Walid, what you have heard."
"So, it is up to you."
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, never spoke any human speech thereafter,
but rather recited to him the words of the Lord of all mankind, glory be to Him and Exalted.
In some narrations,
it is mentioned that when the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, reached [that point],
“But if they turn away, then say: I warn you of a thunderbolt like the thunderbolt (which fell of old upon the tribes) of A'ad and Thamud;” (41:13)
'Utbah stood up and placed his hand over the mouth of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and said, "I adjure you by Allah and by our kinship!"
Meaning: "Do not do this."
"Do not call upon Allah against us to send down a thunderbolt upon us."
Then 'Utbah went to his companions,
and they said to one another as they saw him approaching,
"We swear by Allah, Abu al-Walid has returned to you with a face different from the one he left with."
When he sat with them, they asked,
"What news do you bring, O Abu al-Walid?"
He said,
"I have heard speech, and by Allah, I have never heard anything like it before."
"By Allah, it is neither poetry, nor sorcery, nor divination."
"O assembly of Quraysh,"
"obey me and follow my advice in this matter,"
"and leave this man alone to his affairs."
"Stay away from him."
"For by Allah, this speech I have heard from him will have a momentous outcome."
"If the Arabs overcome him,"
"then you have been spared by others."
"But if he prevails over the Arabs,"
"then his kingdom is your kingdom,"
"and his honor is your honor,"
"and you will be the happiest of people because of him."
They replied,
"By Allah, O Abu al-Walid, he has bewitched you with his tongue."
He said,
"This is my opinion; do as you see fit."
Treasures of the Prophetic biography (Seerah)
The Boycott
After 'Utbah ibn Rabi'ah left the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and said what he said,
Quraysh saw that there must be a solution to this problem they were facing.
They decided upon a total boycott of the Banu Hashim.
They gathered and formed an alliance against the Banu Hashim,
and agreed
not to intermarry with them,
not to trade with them,
not to sit with them,
and not to speak to them.
They wrote a document containing covenants and pledges
that they would never accept any reconciliation from the Banu Hashim,
and that no pity would move them,
until they handed over the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, for them to kill him.
This pact was finalized,
and the document was hung inside the Ka'bah.
The Muslims and the Banu Hashim—both the believers and the disbelievers among them—withdrew,
as did the Banu al-Muttalib—both the believers and the disbelievers among them—
to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
except for Abu Lahab,
the uncle of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and some of the Banu al-Muttalib.
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and those with him went out to a valley known as the Shi'b of Abu Talib.
This boycott lasted for three years.
The siege intensified upon the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and those with him,
until they suffered great hardship,
and were driven to eating leaves and leather.
The strange thing about this boycott is
that the disbelievers of the Banu Hashim and the disbelievers of the Banu al-Muttalib
went out with the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
This shows us that tribal loyalty among the Arabs was strong and influential.
If someone were to ask,
"The Banu Hashim went out with the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
because they are his cousins,"
"then what about the Banu al-Muttalib?"
"And why did the Banu 'Abd Shams and the Banu Nawfal not go out?"
"Even though 'Abd Shams, Nawfal, Hashim, and al-Muttalib"
"were all brothers,"
"their father being 'Abd Manaf."
The answer is that the bond between the Banu al-Muttalib and the Banu Hashim
was stronger than the bond between the Banu Hashim and the Banu 'Abd Shams or the Banu Nawfal,
and likewise stronger than the bond between the Banu al-Muttalib and 'Abd Shams or Nawfal.
This was a long-standing relationship.
For Jubayr ibn Mut'im said:
"On the day of Khaybar,"
"the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, allocated the share of the near of kin to the Banu Hashim and the Banu al-Muttalib,"
"and left out the Banu Nawfal and the Banu 'Abd Shams."
"So 'Uthman ibn 'Affan and I went to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,"
"and said, 'O Messenger of Allah,'"
"'these are the Banu Hashim,'"
"'we do not deny their merit due to the position Allah has placed you among them,'"
"'but what of our brothers from the Banu al-Muttalib?'"
"'You gave to them and left us out, even though our kinship is the same.'"
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, replied,
"'We have never been separated, neither in the Jahiliyyah nor in Islam.'"
"'We and they are one and the same.'"
And he interlaced his fingers, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
The Arabs in the Jahiliyyah before Islam,
and even before the birth of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
used to call Hashim and al-Muttalib 'the two full moons.'
And they called 'Abd Shams and Nawfal 'the two bright ones.'
During these three years, Abu Talib
feared for the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, that he might be assassinated.
So the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
whenever he wanted to sleep,
Abu Talib would let him sleep for a while,
then wake him up and change his place,
so that someone else would sleep in his spot.