Part of Pictures from the lives of the Companions (series completed)
· Lesson 3 of 15
Pictures from the lives of the Companions - Episode (3) - Al-Tufayl bin Amr Al-Dawsi, may God be pleased with him
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Transcript
Machine translation — may contain errors
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
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The Mawaddah Association is pleased
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to present to you glimpses from the lives of the Companions,
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by Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha,
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may Allah have mercy upon him.
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Tufayl ibn Amr al-Dawsi, may Allah be pleased with him.
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Tufayl ibn Amr al-Dawsi:
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The chieftain of the Daws tribe during the Age of Ignorance,
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and a nobleman among the most prominent of the Arabs,
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and one of the few known for his chivalry.
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His fire was never extinguished,
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and his door was never closed to a traveler.
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He would feed the hungry,
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provide security for the fearful,
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and grant refuge to those seeking it.
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Beyond that, he was a man of letters, intelligent and sagacious,
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a poet of refined sensibility,
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and delicate feelings,
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with a keen eye for the beauty and bitterness of eloquence,
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for words held a magical power over him.
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Tufayl left the dwellings of his people in Tihamah, heading toward Makkah,
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while the struggle was raging between the noble Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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and the disbelievers of Quraysh.
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Each side wanted to win supporters for itself,
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and attract allies to its cause.
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The Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was calling to his Lord,
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with faith and truth as his weapons.
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The disbelievers of Quraysh,
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were resisting his call with every weapon,
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and turning people away from him by every means.
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Tufayl found himself entering this battle completely unprepared,
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and plunging into its depths without intent.
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He had not come to Makkah for this purpose,
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nor had the affair of Muhammad and Quraysh ever crossed his mind before.
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Hence, Tufayl ibn Amr al-Dawsi had
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an unforgettable story regarding this struggle.
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So let us listen to it,
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for it is among the most remarkable of tales.
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Tufayl narrated, saying:
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"I arrived in Makkah,
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and no sooner did the leaders of Quraysh see me than they approached me,
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welcoming me with the warmest of welcomes,
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and honoring me with the highest status among them.
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Then their leaders and elders gathered around me and said:
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'O Tufayl, you have come to our land,
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and this man who claims to be a prophet
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has corrupted our affairs, torn our unity apart,
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and scattered our community.
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We fear that what has befallen us
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will befall you and your leadership over your people.
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So do not speak to the man,
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and do not listen to anything from him,
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for he has speech like magic,
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which separates a son from his father,
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a brother from his brother,
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and a wife from her husband.'"
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Tufayl said:
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"By Allah, they kept at me, telling me of his strange reports,
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and frightening me for myself and my people with his wondrous deeds,
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until I resolved not to go near him,
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and not to speak to him or hear anything from him.
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When I went to the Mosque to circumambulate the Ka'bah,
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and seek blessings from its idols, which we used to perform pilgrimage to and venerate,
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I stuffed my ears with cotton,
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for fear that something of Muhammad's speech might reach my hearing.
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But no sooner had I entered the Mosque
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than I found him standing, praying by the Ka'bah,
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a prayer different from our prayer,
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and worshipping in a way different from our worship.
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His sight captivated me,
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and his worship moved me,
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and I found myself drawing closer to him, little by little, without intending to,
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until I was near him.
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Allah willed that some of what he was saying should reach my ears,
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and I heard beautiful speech.
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I said to myself:
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'May your mother be bereaved of you, O Tufayl!
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You are an intelligent man and a poet,
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and the difference between good and evil is not hidden from you.
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What prevents you from listening to what the man says?
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If what he brings is good, accept it,
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and if it is evil, reject it.'"
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Tufayl said:
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"Then I waited until the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, left for his house,
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and I followed him until, when he entered his home, I entered upon him.
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I said: 'O Muhammad,
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your people have told me such and such about you.
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By Allah, they did not cease frightening me about your affair,
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until I blocked my ears with cotton so as not to hear your speech.
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Then Allah willed that I should hear something of it,
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and I found it to be good.
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So present your affair to me.'
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He presented his affair to me,
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and recited to me Surah al-Ikhlas and al-Falaq.
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By Allah, I have never heard speech better than his,
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nor have I seen an affair more just than his.
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At that, he extended his hand to me,
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and I testified that there is no god but Allah,
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and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah,
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and I entered into Islam."
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Tufayl said:
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"Then I stayed in Makkah for a time,
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during which I learned the matters of Islam,
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and memorized what I could of the Qur'an.
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When I resolved to return to my people,
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I said: 'O Messenger of Allah,
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I am a man obeyed among my kin,
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and I am returning to them to call them to Islam.
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So pray to Allah to grant me a sign,
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that may be an aid to me in what I call them to.'
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He said:
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'O Allah, grant him a sign.'
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So I went out to my people,
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until, when I was at a place overlooking their dwellings,
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a light fell between my eyes,
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like a lamp.
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I said:
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'O Allah, place it somewhere other than my face,
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for I fear they might think it is a punishment
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that fell upon my face for abandoning their religion.'
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The light shifted,
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and fell upon the head of my whip.
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People began to see that light on my whip,
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like a hanging lantern,
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while I was descending to them from the mountain pass.
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When I descended,
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my father came to me,
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and he was a very old man.
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I said:
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'Stay away from me, O my father,
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for I am not of you, and you are not of me.'
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He said:
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'Why, my son?'
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I said:
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'I have accepted Islam and followed the religion of Muhammad,
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peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.'
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He said:
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'O my son,
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my religion is your religion.'
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I said:
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'Go and wash yourself and purify your clothes,
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then come so I may teach you what I have learned.'
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He went, washed, and purified his clothes,
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then came, and I presented Islam to him,
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and he accepted Islam.
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Then my wife came,
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and I said: 'Stay away from me,
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for I am not of you, and you are not of me.'
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She said:
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'Why, may my father and mother be sacrificed for you?'
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I said:
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'Islam has separated me from you,
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for I have accepted Islam and followed the religion of Muhammad,
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peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.'
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She said:
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'Then my religion is your religion.'
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I said:
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'Go and purify yourself with the water of Dhu al-Shara.'
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Dhu al-Shara was an idol of Daws, around which was water that flowed down from the mountain.
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She said:
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'May my father and mother be sacrificed for you,
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do you fear anything for the children from Dhu al-Shara?'
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I said:
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'Woe to you and to Dhu al-Shara!
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I told you to go and wash there, far away from the people,
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and I guarantee to you that this deaf stone will not do anything.'
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So she went, washed, and then came,
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and I presented Islam to her,
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and she accepted Islam.
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Then I called the Daws tribe,
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but they were slow to respond, except for Abu Hurayrah,
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for he was the fastest of people to accept Islam."
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Tufayl said:
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"Then I came to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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in Makkah,
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and with me was Abu Hurayrah.
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The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to me:
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'What is behind you, O Tufayl?'
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I said:
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'Hearts covered with veils and intense disbelief.
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Immorality and disobedience have overcome the Daws.'
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The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, stood up,
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performed ablution, prayed,
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and raised his hands to the sky.
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Abu Hurayrah said:
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'When I saw him doing that,
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I feared he would pray against my people and they would perish,
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so I said: 'O my people!'
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But the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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began to say:
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'O Allah, guide the Daws!
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O Allah, guide the Daws!
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O Allah, guide the Daws!'
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Then he turned to Tufayl
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and said:
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'Return to your people, be gentle with them,
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and call them to Islam.'"
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Tufayl said:
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I remained in the land of Daws,
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calling them to Islam,
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until the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, migrated
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to Medina.
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Badr, Uhud, and the Trench passed by,
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and then I came to the Prophet, peace be upon him,
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accompanied by eighty families from Daws.
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They had embraced Islam, and their Islam was sincere.
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The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, was pleased with us,
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and he assigned us a share of the spoils of Khaybar along with the Muslims.
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We said,
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"O Messenger of Allah,
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place us on your right flank in every expedition you undertake,
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and let our battle cry be 'Mabrur' (Righteous)."
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Al-Tufayl said,
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"I remained with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
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until Allah granted him the conquest of Mecca.
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I said, 'O Messenger of Allah,
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send me to Dhu al-Kaffayn,
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the idol of 'Amr ibn Humama,
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so that I may burn it.'"
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The Prophet, peace be upon him, gave him permission.
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He set out toward the idol with a detachment of his people.
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When he reached it and intended to burn it,
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men, women, and children gathered around him,
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harboring evil intentions toward him,
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waiting for a thunderbolt to strike him down
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if he were to inflict any harm upon Dhu al-Kaffayn.
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But al-Tufayl,
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approached the idol in full view of its worshippers,
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and began to set fire to its base,
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while reciting verses:
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"O Dhu al-Kaffayn, I am not one of your worshippers;
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our birth is older than your birth.
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I have stuffed fire into your base."
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No sooner had the fire consumed the idol
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than it consumed with it what remained of polytheism
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in the tribe of Daws.
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The entire tribe embraced Islam,
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and their Islam was sincere.
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Al-Tufayl ibn 'Amr al-Dawsi remained,
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after that, in the company of the Messenger of Allah,
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may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him,
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until the Prophet was taken
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to the side of his Lord.
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When the Caliphate passed after him
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to his companion, al-Siddiq (Abu Bakr),
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al-Tufayl placed himself, his sword, and his son
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in obedience to the successor of the Messenger of Allah.
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When the Wars of Apostasy broke out,
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al-Tufayl rushed to the vanguard of the Muslim army
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to fight Musaylima the Liar,
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accompanied by his son, 'Amr.
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While he was on his way to al-Yamama,
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he saw a vision.
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He said to his companions,
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"I have seen a vision,
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so interpret it for me."
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They asked, "What did you see?"
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He said,
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"I saw that my head had been shaved,
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that a bird had emerged from my mouth,
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and that a woman had taken me into her womb."
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"And I saw that my son 'Amr was seeking me urgently,
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but a barrier was placed between him and me."
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They said, "It is good."
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He said,
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"As for me, by Allah, I have interpreted it:
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As for the shaving of my head,
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it means it will be severed.
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As for the bird that emerged from my mouth,
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it is my soul.
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As for the woman who took me into her womb,
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it is the earth
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being dug for me,
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so that I may be buried in its depths.
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I hope to be killed as a martyr.
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As for my son seeking me,
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it means he is seeking the martyrdom that I shall attain,
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if Allah wills,
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but he will attain it later."
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In the Battle of al-Yamama,
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the noble Companion,
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al-Tufayl ibn 'Amr al-Dawsi,
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fought most valiantly,
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until he fell as a martyr on the battlefield.
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As for his son 'Amr,
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he continued to fight
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until wounds exhausted him,
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and his right hand was severed.
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He returned to Medina,
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leaving behind his father and his hand on the soil of al-Yamama.
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During the Caliphate of 'Umar ibn al-Khattab,
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'Amr ibn al-Tufayl entered upon him.
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Food was brought to the Commander of the Faithful,
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and the people were sitting with him.
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He invited the people to eat,
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but 'Amr withdrew.
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The Commander of the Faithful said to him,
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"What is the matter? Perhaps you are holding back from the food out of shyness because of your hand?"
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He said, "Yes, O Commander of the Faithful."
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He said, "By Allah, I will not taste this food
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until you mix it with your severed hand.
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By Allah, there is no one among the people
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who has a part of himself in Paradise except you."
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He meant by that his hand.
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The dream of martyrdom continued to beckon to 'Amr
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ever since he parted from his father.
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When the Battle of Yarmouk took place,
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'Amr hastened to it among the first,
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and he continued to fight
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until he attained the martyrdom his father had promised him.
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May Allah have mercy on al-Tufayl ibn 'Amr al-Dawsi,
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for he was a martyr,
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and the father of a martyr.
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O Allah, grant him a sign that aids him in the good he intends.
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From the supplication of the Messenger,
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through Muhammad and his companions.
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The lofty structure has been aided,
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O slogan, assist me and pour forth;
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in their praise, can there be any more?