Part of Pictures from the lives of the Companions (series completed)
· Lesson 33 of 93
Pictures from the lives of the Companions - Episode (48) - Naeem bin Masoud, 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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Mawaddah Association is pleased
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to present to you vignettes 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 on him.
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Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him.
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Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud possessed a sharp, vigilant heart,
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brilliant intellect,
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and exceptional resourcefulness—entering and exiting tricky situations with ease.
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No dilemma could impede him, nor could any problem defeat him.
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He exemplified the desert bedouin with all the sound intuition Allah had bestowed upon him,
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alongside quick wit and deep cunning.
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However, he was a man given to youthful indiscretions and a companion of pleasure,
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both of which drew him most strongly to the Jews of Yathrib.
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Whenever his soul yearned for a songstress or his ear craved the sound of a lute,
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he would pack his saddlebags and set out from his people's dwellings in Najd,
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heading straight toward Medina,
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where he spent his wealth generously upon its Jewish inhabitants
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so that they, in turn, would lavish pleasure upon him even more generously.
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Consequently, Nu'aym frequented Yathrib often
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and maintained close ties with its inhabitants,
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particularly Banu Qurayzah.
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When Allah honored humanity by sending His Messenger with the religion of guidance and truth,
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and the mountain passes of Mecca shone with the light of Islam,
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Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud was still giving free rein to his desires.
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Thus, he turned away from the new faith with utter aversion,
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fearing it would come between him and his pleasures and delights.
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Soon, however, he found himself driven to join the fiercest enemies of Islam,
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compelled to unsheathe his sword against it.
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Yet Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud
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opened a new chapter for himself in the history of the Islamic da'wah on the Day of the Trench (al-Ahzab).
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Upon this page, he penned one of the most marvelous stories of stratagem in war—
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a story that history continues to recount with immense awe at its tightly woven chapters
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and admiration for its sharp, intelligent hero.
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To grasp the full story of Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud,
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you must step back a little in time.
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Shortly before the Battle of the Trench,
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a faction from the Jewish tribe of Banu al-Nadir in Yathrib rose up,
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and their leaders began mobilizing the confederate factions to wage war against the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and eliminate his religion.
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They came to Quraysh in Mecca,
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inciting them to fight the Muslims
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and pledging to join forces with them upon their arrival in Medina,
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setting a firm, unalterable appointment for that purpose.
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They then left them and set out for Ghatafan in Najd,
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stirring them up against Islam and its Prophet
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and calling on them to eradicate the new religion from its roots.
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They disclosed to them what had been agreed upon between themselves and Quraysh,
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pledged to them the same commitments,
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and informed them of the agreed-upon date.
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Quraysh thereupon marched out from Mecca in their entirety,
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with all their cavalry and infantry,
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led by their chieftain Abu Sufyan ibn Harb,
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heading toward Medina.
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Likewise, Ghatafan set forth from Najd with all their equipment and numbers,
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led by 'Uyaynah ibn Hisn al-Ghatafani.
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At the forefront of Ghatafan's men
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was the hero of our story, Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud.
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When the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, received
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news of their mobilization,
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he gathered his Companions and consulted them on the matter.
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Their decision settled upon digging a trench around Medina
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to repel this massive invasion
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which they lacked the strength to face head-on,
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allowing the trench to stand against the dense invading army.
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Scarcely had the two invading armies from Mecca and Najd
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drawn near the outskirts of Medina
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when the leaders of the Jewish tribe of Banu al-Nadir went
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to the leaders of Banu Qurayzah residing inside Medina,
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inciting them to enter the war against the Prophet
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and urging them to support the two armies coming from Mecca and Najd.
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The leaders of Banu Qurayzah said to them,
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"You have called us to that which we love and desire,
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but you know that between us and Muhammad
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is a covenant to maintain peace and non-aggression with him,
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in exchange for living in Medina safe and secure.
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You know that the ink on our covenant with him has not yet dried,
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and we fear that if Muhammad emerges victorious in this war,
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he will strike us with a mighty blow
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and eradicate us completely from Medina as punishment for our treachery toward him."
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However, the leaders of Banu al-Nadir kept enticing them to break the pact,
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embellishing for them the act of betraying Muhammad,
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assuring them that the tide would inevitably turn against him this time,
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and bolstering their resolve with the arrival of the two grand armies.
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Before long, the Jews of Banu Qurayzah yielded to them,
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broke their covenant with the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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tore up the document that existed between them and him,
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and declared their alignment with the Confederates in waging war against him.
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The news fell upon the Muslims like a thunderbolt.
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The armies of the Confederates besieged Medina,
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cutting off supplies and provisions from its people.
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The Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, felt
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that he was caught between the jaws of the enemy:
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Quraysh and Ghatafan were encamped opposite the Muslims outside Medina,
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while Banu Qurayzah lay in wait, poised behind the Muslims inside Medina.
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Furthermore, the hypocrites and those in whose hearts was a disease
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began to reveal what was hidden in their souls, saying,
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"Muhammad used to promise us that we would possess the treasures of Chosroes and Caesar,
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yet today, not one of us feels secure enough
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even to go relieve himself!"
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Then they began defecting from the Prophet group after group,
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under the pretext of fearing for their women, children, and homes
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against an attack that Banu Qurayzah might launch upon them if fighting broke out,
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until none remained with the Messenger except a few hundred sincere believers.
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On one of the nights of the siege,
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which lasted nearly twenty days,
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the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, turned to his Lord,
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supplicating Him with the prayer of one in desperate distress,
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repeating in his supplication the words:
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"O Allah, I beseech You for Your covenant and Your promise!
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O Allah, I beseech You for Your covenant and Your promise!"
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On that very night, Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud
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was tossing sleeplessly upon his bed,
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as though his eyelids had been nailed open, unable to close for sleep.
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He began gazing at the stars floating across the clear expanse of the sky,
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lost in deep reflection.
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Suddenly, he found his inner self questioning him, saying:
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"Woe to you, O Nu'aym!
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What brought you from those distant lands in Najd
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to fight this man and those with him?
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You are not fighting him to champion a stolen right,
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nor out of honor for a violated sanctity;
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you have only come to fight him for no known reason!
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Is it fitting for a man endowed with a mind like yours
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to fight and be killed, or kill, for no cause?
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Woe to you, O Nu'aym!
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What makes you unsheathe your sword against this righteous man
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who commands his followers to observe justice, benevolence,
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and charity to kinsfolk?
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What drives you to plunge your spear into the blood of his companions,
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who have merely followed the guidance and truth he brought them?"
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This fierce inner dialogue within Nu'aym was resolved only
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by a firm resolve that he immediately rose to execute.
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Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud slipped out from his people's camp under the cover of darkness
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and hastened his steps toward the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
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When the Prophet, peace be upon him, saw him standing before him, he said,
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"Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud?"
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He replied, "Yes, O Messenger of Allah."
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He asked,
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"What brings you at this hour?"
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He said,
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"I have come to bear witness that there is no god but Allah,
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that you are the servant of Allah and His Messenger,
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and that what you have brought is the truth."
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He then added, saying,
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"I have embraced Islam, O Messenger of Allah,
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and my people do not know of my Islam.
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So command me as you wish."
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The Prophet, peace be upon him, said,
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"You are but a single man among us.
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Go back to your people and undermine them if you can,
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for war is deceit."
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He replied, "Yes, O Messenger of Allah,
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and you shall see what pleases you, Allah willing."
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Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud went immediately to Banu Qurayzah,
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having been an old friend and companion of theirs,
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and said to them,
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"O Banu Qurayzah,
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you know my affection for you and the sincerity of my counsel to you."
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They said, "Yes,
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you are not suspected of any ill intent among us."
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He said,
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"Quraysh and Ghatafan have a position in this war different from yours."
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They asked, "How so?"
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He said,
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"This town is your town,
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wherein lie your property, your children, and your wives,
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and you cannot abandon it for anywhere else.
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As for Quraysh and Ghatafan,
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their land, property, children, and wives are elsewhere.
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They came to fight Muhammad
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and called upon you to break his covenant and assist them against him,
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and you complied.
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If they achieve success in fighting him, they will seize the spoils;
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but if they fail to overcome him,
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they will return to their lands safely,
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leaving you at his mercy,
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and he will exact the worst vengeance upon you.
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You know well that you have no power against him if you are left alone with him."
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They said, "You have spoken the truth.
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What, then, is your advice?"
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He said,
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"My advice to you
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is not to fight alongside them until you take a group of their nobles
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and hold them as hostages in your custody.
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In doing so, you will compel them to fight Muhammad alongside you
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until you prevail over him,
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or until the last man among you and them perishes."
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They said, "You have given sound counsel and advice."
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He then departed from them
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and went to Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, the leader of Quraysh,
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and said to him and those with him,
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"O people of Quraysh,
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you know my affection for you and my enmity toward Muhammad.
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A matter has reached my knowledge,
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and I felt it my duty to disclose it to you
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as sincere advice,
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provided you keep it secret and do not attribute it to me."
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They said, "You have our word on that."
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So he said:
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"Banu Qurayzah have repented for opposing Muhammad,
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and they have sent word to him saying,
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'We deeply regret what we have done,
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and we are resolved to return to our treaty and peaceful relations with you.
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Would it satisfy you if we were to seize for you from Quraysh,
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and then from Ghatafan, many men from among their nobles,
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and hand them over to you so that you may strike off their necks,
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and then join forces with you to fight them until you annihilate them?'
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So he sent back word to them saying,
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'Yes.'
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Therefore, if the Jews send word asking you for hostages from among your men,
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do not hand over a single person to them!"
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Abu Sufyan replied,
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"What an excellent ally you are!
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May you be rewarded with goodness."
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Nu'aym then departed from Abu Sufyan
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and proceeded until he reached his own people, Ghatafan.
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He related to them the exact same thing he had told Abu Sufyan,
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and warned them against the very thing he had warned him about.
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Abu Sufyan wanted to test Banu Qurayzah,
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so he sent his son to them, saying to them:
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"My father sends you greetings of peace and says to you:
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'Our siege of Muhammad and his companions has dragged on until we have grown weary,
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and we are now determined to fight Muhammad and finish him off.
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My father has sent me to invite you to engage him in battle tomorrow.'"
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They said to him, "Today is the Sabbath,
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and we do not engage in any work on it.
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Furthermore, we will not fight alongside you
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until you give us seventy of your nobles and the nobles of Ghatafan
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to be held as hostages in our possession.
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For we fear that if the fighting becomes fierce for you,
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you will hasten back to your homelands and leave us alone to face Muhammad,
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and you well know that we have no power to withstand him."
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When the son of Abu Sufyan returned to his people
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and informed them of what he had heard from Banu Qurayzah,
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they all exclaimed with one voice:
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"May the offspring of apes and swine be disgraced!
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By Allah, even if they requested a single sheep as a hostage,
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we would not hand it over to them!"
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Thus Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud succeeded in shattering the ranks of the Confederates
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and splintering their unity.
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And Allah unleashed upon Quraysh and its allies
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a howling, tempestuous wind
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that began uprooting their tents,
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overturning their cooking pots,
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extinguishing their fires,
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striking their faces,
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and filling their eyes with dust.
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Finding no alternative but to depart,
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they retreated under the cover of darkness.
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When morning came upon the Muslims
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and they found that the enemies of Allah had turned back in retreat,
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they began proclaiming:
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"Praise be to Allah, Who aided His servant,
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granted victory to His soldiers,
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and routed the Confederates alone!"
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Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud remained
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after that day
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a trusted confidant of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
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He entrusted him with important tasks,
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charged him with heavy burdens,
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and he carried the banners before him.
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On the day of the Conquest of Mecca,
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Abu Sufyan ibn Harb stood
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reviewing the armies of the Muslims,
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when he saw a man carrying the banner of Ghatafan.
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He asked those with him, "Who is this?"
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They replied, "Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud."
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He said, "How terrible was what he did to us on the Day of the Trench!
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By Allah, he used to be among the most severe of people
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in enmity toward Muhammad,
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yet here he is, carrying the banner of his people before him,
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marching to wage war against us under his standard!"
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Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud—
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a man who understood that war is deceit.
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He departed alongside his companions,
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having laid firm foundations for a lofty edifice.
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O poetry, assist me
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in praising them—does it not adorn them?