Pictures from the lives of the Companions - Episode (53) - Suraqa bin Malik, may God be pleased with him

0:00 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

0:15 The Mawaddah Association is pleased

0:18 to present to you glimpses from the lives of the Companions,

0:22 by Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha,

0:25 may Allah have mercy upon him.

0:27 Suraqah Ibn Malik,

0:32 may Allah be pleased with him.

0:47 One morning, the Quraysh awoke in a state of alarm and panic,

0:51 for word had spread through their assemblies that Muhammad (peace be upon him) had departed Makkah, shrouded by the cover of darkness.

0:57 The leaders of Quraysh could not believe the news,

1:00 and they rushed to search for the Prophet (peace be upon him) in every house of the Banu Hashim,

1:05 and sought him in every home of his Companions.

1:08 Eventually, they arrived at the house of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him).

1:11 His daughter, Asma', came out to them.

1:14 Abu Jahl asked her,

1:16 "Where is your father, O girl?"

1:18 She replied, "I do not know where he is now."

1:21 He raised his hand and struck her cheek so hard that her earring fell to the ground.

1:26 The leaders of Quraysh went mad with rage when they became certain that Muhammad (peace be upon him) had left Makkah.

1:32 They recruited all the trackers they could find to determine the path he had taken,

1:38 and they set out with them to search for him.

1:40 When they reached the Cave of Thawr,

1:42 the trackers said to them,

1:44 "By Allah, your companion has not passed beyond this cave."

1:48 These trackers were not mistaken in what they told Quraysh,

1:52 for Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his companion were indeed inside the cave.

1:56 Quraysh was standing right above their heads,

1:59 to the point that the Truthful One (Abu Bakr) saw the feet of the people moving above the cave,

2:04 and his eyes welled with tears.

2:06 The Messenger (peace be upon him) looked at him with a gaze of love, kindness, and gentle reproach.

2:10 The Truthful One whispered, saying,

2:13 "By Allah, I do not weep for my own sake,

2:16 but for fear that I might see you suffer harm, O Messenger of Allah."

2:20 The noble Messenger (peace be upon him) said to him, reassuringly,

2:23 "Do not grieve, O Abu Bakr,

2:24 for Allah is with us."

2:27 Then Allah sent down tranquility upon the heart of the Truthful One.

2:30 He began to look at the feet of the people,

2:33 then said, "O Messenger of Allah,

2:36 if one of them were to look down at his own feet, he would see us."

2:40 The Messenger (peace be upon him) replied,

2:42 "What is your opinion, O Abu Bakr, of two,

2:45 of whom Allah is the third?"

2:47 Just then, a tracker from Quraysh said to the people,

2:52 "Shall we look into the cave?"

2:55 But Umayyah Ibn Khalaf said to him mockingly,

2:58 "Do you not see this spider that has spun its web over the entrance?

3:02 By Allah, it is older than the birth of Muhammad."

3:05 However, Abu Jahl said,

3:08 "By al-Lat and al-'Uzza,

3:10 I truly think he is near us,

3:13 hearing what we say and seeing what we do,

3:16 but his magic has cast a veil over our eyes."

3:19 Nevertheless, Quraysh did not give up on the task of finding Muhammad (peace be upon him),

3:23 nor did their resolve to pursue him falter.

3:27 They announced among the tribes scattered along the route between Makkah and Madinah

3:32 that whoever brought them Muhammad (peace be upon him), alive or dead,

3:36 would receive one hundred of the finest camels.

3:39 Suraqah Ibn Malik al-Mudliji was

3:42 in one of the assemblies of his people in Qadid,

3:45 near Makkah,

3:47 when a messenger from Quraysh entered upon them

3:50 and announced the news of the grand prize

3:53 that Quraysh had offered to anyone who brought them Muhammad (peace be upon him), alive or dead.

3:58 No sooner had Suraqah heard of the one hundred camels

4:01 than his greed was stirred,

4:04 and his desire for them intensified.

4:06 Yet, he composed himself,

4:08 and did not utter a single word,

4:11 so that the greed of others would not be aroused.

4:14 Before Suraqah rose from his seat,

4:17 a man from his tribe entered the assembly and said,

4:19 "By Allah, three men just passed by me,

4:23 and I suspect they are Muhammad, Abu Bakr, and their guide."

4:28 Suraqah said,

4:30 "Rather, they are the people of so-and-so,

4:32 who went out searching for a camel they had lost."

4:35 The man said,

4:37 "Perhaps they are,"

4:39 and he fell silent.

4:41 Suraqah waited a little while,

4:43 so that his departure would not stir anyone in the assembly.

4:46 When the people became engaged in another conversation,

4:49 he slipped out from among them,

4:51 and went lightly and quickly to his house.

4:54 He whispered to his slave girl to bring out his horse, unobserved by the eyes of the people,

5:00 and to tether it for him in the depths of the valley.

5:03 He ordered his servant to prepare his weapons,

5:06 and to take them out from behind the houses

5:09 so that no one would see him,

5:11 and to place them in a spot near the horse.

5:14 Suraqah donned his armor,

5:17 buckled on his weapon,

5:19 mounted his horse, and set off.

5:21 He began to ride hard to catch up with Muhammad (peace be upon him)

5:24 before anyone else could reach him and win the prize of Quraysh.

5:29 Suraqah Ibn Malik was a knight among the renowned knights of his people,

5:34 tall of stature and imposing in presence,

5:37 skilled in tracking,

5:39 and patient with the hardships of the road.

5:41 In addition to all that,

5:44 he was clever, intelligent, and a poet.

5:46 His horse was of the finest breed.

5:49 Suraqah set off, covering the ground swiftly,

5:52 but it was not long before his horse stumbled,

5:55 and he fell from its back.

5:57 He took this as a bad omen and said,

5:59 "What is this?

6:01 Woe to you, O horse!"

6:03 He mounted again,

6:05 but he had not gone far before it stumbled once more.

6:09 His sense of foreboding increased,

6:11 and he contemplated turning back,

6:13 but nothing deterred him from his intent except his greed for the one hundred camels.

6:16 Suraqah had not moved far from the place where his horse stumbled

6:21 when he caught sight of Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his companion.

6:24 He reached for his bow,

6:26 but his hand froze in place.

6:29 This was because he saw the legs of his horse sinking into the earth,

6:33 and smoke rising from beneath them,

6:36 covering his eyes and the eyes of the horse.

6:39 He urged the horse on,

6:41 but it was firmly stuck in the ground,

6:43 as if it had been nailed there with iron spikes.

6:46 He turned to the Messenger (peace be upon him) and his companion,

6:49 and said in a pleading voice,

6:51 "O you two,

6:53 pray to your Lord for me to release the legs of my horse,

6:56 and you have my word that I will leave you alone."

6:59 The Messenger (peace be upon him) prayed for him,

7:01 and Allah released the legs of his horse.

7:04 But his greed was soon stirred again,

7:08 and he urged his horse toward them.

7:10 This time, its legs sank deeper than before.

7:13 He cried out to them for help and said,

7:16 "Here are my provisions, my gear, and my weapons;

7:19 take them,

7:21 and you have the covenant of Allah from me

7:23 that I will turn away from you those who are behind me."

7:26 He (the Prophet) said to him,

7:28 "We have no need of your provisions or your gear,

7:31 but turn the people away from us."

7:33 Then the Messenger (peace be upon him) prayed for him,

7:35 and his horse was freed.

7:37 When he was about to return,

7:39 he called out to them, saying,

7:41 "Wait, let me speak to you,

7:43 for by Allah, nothing you dislike will come to you from me."

7:47 He (the Prophet) said to him,

7:49 "What do you want from us?"

7:51 He replied,

7:53 "By Allah, O Muhammad,

7:55 I know that your religion will prevail and your affair will be exalted.

7:58 So promise me that when I come to you in your kingdom, you will honor me,

8:01 and write that down for me."

8:03 The Messenger (peace be upon him) commanded the Truthful One,

8:07 who wrote it for him on a piece of bone,

8:10 and handed it to him.

8:11 When he was about to depart,

8:13 the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to him,

8:16 "How will you be, O Suraqah,

8:18 when you wear the bracelets of Chosroes?"

8:21 Suraqah said in astonishment,

8:23 "Chosroes, son of Hormuz?"

8:25 He replied, "Yes,

8:27 Chosroes, son of Hormuz."

8:29 Suraqah returned the way he came,

8:31 and found the people approaching,

8:33 searching for the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him).

8:36 He said to them,

8:38 "Go back,

8:39 for I have scoured the earth searching for him,

8:42 and you know well my expertise in tracking."

8:45 So they returned.

8:47 He then kept his encounter with Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his companion a secret

8:50 until he was certain that they had reached Madinah

8:53 and were safe from the aggression of Quraysh.

8:56 Only then did he reveal it.

8:58 When Abu Jahl heard the news of Suraqah's encounter with the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his stance,

9:04 he blamed him for his cowardice, hesitation, and for missing the opportunity.

9:09 Suraqah replied to his blame, saying:

9:12 "O Abu al-Hakam, by Allah, had you been a witness

9:15 to my horse when its legs sank into the earth,

9:18 you would have known, without a doubt, that Muhammad

9:21 is a Messenger with clear proof; so who can oppose him?"

9:26 The days ran their course,

9:28 and Muhammad (peace be upon him), who had left Makkah as a fugitive,

9:33 shrouded by the cover of darkness,

9:35 returned to it as a triumphant master,

9:38 surrounded by thousands upon thousands, with flashing swords and brown spears.

9:43 And the leaders of Quraysh,

9:45 who had filled the earth with arrogance and pride, came to him, fearful and trembling,

9:51 asking him for mercy and saying,

9:54 "What will you do with us?"

9:56 He said to them, with the magnanimity of the Prophets,

9:59 "Go, for you are the freed ones."

10:02 At that moment,

10:03 Suraqah Ibn Malik prepared his mount,

10:06 He set off toward the Messenger of Allah to declare his Islam before him.

10:10 He carried with him the document that had been written for him ten years earlier.

10:14 Suraqah said:

10:16 "I came to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, at al-Ji'ranah.

10:20 I entered among his battalion of the Ansar.

10:23 They began to strike me with the butts of their spears, saying:

10:27 'Stay back, stay back! What do you want?'

10:30 I kept pushing through their ranks,

10:31 until I drew near to the Messenger of Allah while he was upon his camel.

10:36 I raised my hand with the document,

10:38 and said, 'O Messenger of Allah,

10:40 I am Suraqah Ibn Malik,

10:42 and this is your document for me.'"

10:44 The Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

10:47 "Draw near to me, O Suraqah, draw near.

10:50 This is a day of fulfillment and righteousness."

10:53 So I approached him,

10:55 and declared my Islam before him,

10:57 and I received his goodness and kindness.

10:58 Not more than a few months had passed since Suraqah Ibn Malik met the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

11:06 when Allah chose to take His Prophet to His side.

11:10 Suraqah grieved for him with the deepest grief,

11:13 and he began to envision that day,

11:16 when he had intended to kill him for the sake of a hundred camels.

11:20 He realized how all the camels of this world

11:23 were not worth a clipping of the Prophet’s fingernail to him now.

11:28 He kept repeating the words the Prophet had said to him:

11:31 "How will you be, O Suraqah, when you wear the bracelets of Chosroes?"

11:35 He never doubted that he would indeed wear them.

11:39 Then the days turned once more,

11:43 and the affairs of the Muslims fell to the Faruq, may Allah be pleased with him.

11:47 During his blessed reign, the armies of the Muslims swept over the Persian Empire,

11:52 just as a hurricane sweeps.

11:55 They began to demolish fortresses, defeat armies,

11:58 shake thrones, and seize spoils,

12:01 until Allah brought about the end of the Chosroes' empire at their hands.

12:05 One day, toward the end of the caliphate of Umar,

12:09 the messengers of Sa'd Ibn Abi Waqqas arrived in Medina,

12:13 bringing glad tidings of the victory to the Caliph of the Muslims,

12:16 and carrying to the public treasury of the Muslims the fifth of the spoils

12:20 that the warriors had gained in the path of Allah.

12:23 When the spoils were placed before Umar,

12:25 he looked at them in astonishment.

12:28 For among them was the crown of Chosroes, encrusted with pearls,

12:32 and his garments woven with threads of gold,

12:35 and his mantle embroidered with jewels,

12:38 and his two bracelets, the likes of which no eye had ever seen,

12:41 along with countless other treasures.

12:45 Umar began to turn over this precious treasure with a staff he held in his hand.

12:50 Then he turned to those around him and said,

12:52 "Indeed, a people who have surrendered this are surely honest."

12:55 Ali Ibn Abi Talib, who was present at the time, said to him,

12:59 "You have remained chaste,

13:01 so your subjects have remained chaste, O Commander of the Faithful.

13:04 Had you indulged, they would have indulged."

13:07 Then the Faruq, may Allah be pleased with him, called for Suraqah Ibn Malik.

13:12 He dressed him in the tunic, trousers, and cloak of Chosroes.

13:17 He girded him with his sword and belt,

13:19 placed his crown upon his head,

13:22 and put his bracelets on his arms.

13:24 Yes, his bracelets.

13:26 At that, the Muslims cried out:

13:29 "Allah is the Greatest! Allah is the Greatest!

13:32 Allah is the Greatest!"

13:34 Then Umar turned to Suraqah and said,

13:37 "Well done, well done!

13:39 A Bedouin from the tribe of Mudlij,

13:41 with the crown of Chosroes upon his head,

13:43 and his bracelets upon his arms."

13:45 Then he raised his head to the sky and said,

13:47 "O Allah, You withheld this wealth from Your Messenger,

13:51 who was more beloved to You than I, and more noble in Your sight.

13:55 And You withheld it from Abu Bakr,

13:57 who was more beloved to You than I, and more noble in Your sight.

14:01 Yet You have given it to me.

14:03 I seek refuge in You lest You have given it to me to lead me into temptation."

14:07 He did not rise from his seat until he had distributed it among the Muslims.

14:12 "How will you be, O Suraqah,

14:16 when you wear—"

14:19 "—the bracelets of Chosroes."

14:22 Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.

Pictures from the lives of the Companions - Episode (53) - Suraqa bin Malik, may God be pleased with him

Transcript