THE PREACHING OF ABU HURAYRAH UMMU SULAYM AMR, SON OF MURRAH JUHANI URWA, SON OF MASOOD TUFAYL, SON OF AMR DOWSI Hayatus Sahabah by Muhadith Kandahlawi (Kandhelvi) Rendered into current English by Khadeijah Abdullah Darwish (Anne Stephens) Free give away Acquired from Amazon’s Kindle Not for sale or resale by any third party ©2013 - www.Muhammad.com ABU HURAYRAH PREACHES TO HIS MOTHER Abu Hurayrah said he used to invite his mother to Islam but she remained in disbelief. One day as he was telling her about Islam, she spoke disrespectfully about the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, which he did not like. (He was so upset that) he went in tears to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, and said, “O Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, when I invite my mother to Islam she refuses to accept and when I approached her today she told me things about you that I did not like. Supplicate to Allah to guide her.” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, supplicated saying, “O Allah, guide the mother of Abu Hurayrah.” Abu Hurayrah said he was happy that the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, supplicated for her and returned to her house. When he tried to open its door he found it locked and said, “Upon hearing my footsteps, my mother shouted out, ‘Stay where you are’ (she was taking a shower before embracing Islam). In haste she clothed herself and put on a scarf. Then she opened the door and said, “O Abu Hurayrah, I bear witness that there is no god except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.” Abu Hurayrah said that he went back to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace b e upon him, and told him what had happened, whereupon he praised Allah and supplicated for them. In another narration, Abu Hurayrah is reported as saying, “By Allah, whenever any male or female Muslim hears my name, they take a liking to me.” The narrator asked, “How do you know this?” So, Abu Hurayrah told him that he used to invite his mother to Islam, and the narration continues in a similar way to the previous hadith and ends with the words, “I made haste in my return to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, crying out of happiness, whereas I had been crying out of sorrow earlier and said, “O Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, hear the good news, Allah has accepted your supplication and guided the mother of Abu Hurayrah to Islam” Then I asked, “O Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, supplicate to Allah to make my mother and I beloved to every Muslim, male and female.” Thereupon, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, supplicated, “O Allah, make this little worshipper and his mother beloved by every Muslim, male or female.” Thereafter, when any Muslim hears my name, they take a liking to me.” THE PREACHING OF UMMU SULAYM When Abu Talha proposed marriage to Ummu Sulaym (she spoke to him about Islam) and he embraced Islam. Anas (the son of Ummu Sulaym) narrates that before Abu Talha had embraced Islam, Abu Talha proposed marriage to Ummu Sulaym but she said to him, “O Abu Talha, don’t you realize that the god you worship is a tree growing from the ground?” Abu Talha replied, “Yes, indeed I do.” Then she asked, “Don’t you feel ashamed to worship a tree? If you accept Islam, I don’t require a dowry from you.” Abu Talha told her he would think about the matter and left. Later he returned to Umm Sulaym and said, “I bear witness that there is no god except Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.” Umm Sulaym then said to Anas, “O Anas, officiate the marriage of Abu Talha,” So Anas conducted the marriage. THE PREACHING OF THE COMPANIONS TO TRIBES DIMAM, SON OF THAL’ABA PREACHES TO THE TRIBE OF BANU SA’D, SON OF BAKR Abdullah, son of Abbas narrates that the tribe of Banu Sa’d, son of Bakr sent Diman, son of Thal’aba as their representative to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him. When he arrived (in Medina) he settled his camel at the door of the Mosque and tied it up. Thereafter he entered the Mosque where the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, was sitting with some of his Companions. Diman was a large, hairy, heavily built man. He approached and stood before the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, and the Companions and asked, “Which of you is the descendant of Abdul Muttalib?” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, replied, “I am the descendant of Abdul Muttalib.” Whereupon Diman asked, “Are you Muhammad?” “Yes” replied the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him. Then he said, “O descendant of Abdul Muttalib, I want to ask you some questions, and I will be very blunt, so please do not take offence.” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, told him, “I will not take offence, you may ask whatever you please.” Diman said, “I ask you in the Name of Allah, who is your God, the deity of those before you and the deity of those who come after you. Has Allah sent you to us?” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, replied, “Yes, by Allah!” Diman asked further, “I ask you in the Name of Allah, who is your God, the deity of those before you and the deity of those who come after you, has Allah commanded you to instruct us that we should worship only Him who is the only One and that we should not ascribe anyone as a partner to Him?” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, answered, “Yes, by Allah!” Diman inquired again, “I ask you in the Name of Allah, who is your deity, the deity of those before you and the deity of those who come after you, has Allah issued the command to you that we must offer these five prayers?” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, responded, “Yes, by Allah”. Diman continued to ask the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, in the same manner about each of the Islamic obligations, payment of the obligatory charity (zakat), fasting the month of Ramadan, offering the pilgrimage as well as other injunctions of the Islamic law. To each question, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, replied, “Yes, by Allah!” Diman had now completed his questioning and announced, “I bear witness that there is no god except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.” Diman then said, “I will fulfill all these obligations and abstain from everything you have forbidden. I will neither add, nor subtract anything.” Thereafter, Diman returned home on his camel. The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, said to his Companions, “If this man with two locks of long hair is truthful, he will definitely enter Paradise.” When Diman reached his people, the first thing he said was, “Al Lat and Al Uzza are abominable!” His fellow tribesmen said, “Do not say that Diman! Beware of the white liver, beware of leprosy, beware of insanity (they thought their gods would afflict him with these diseases by his declaration). Diman said to them, “Shame on you, by Allah! These two idols can neither harm nor benefit you. Allah has sent a Messenger and revealed a Book to him to save you from what you are involved in. I bear witness that there is no god except Allah and that Muhammad is the worshipper and Messenger of Allah. I have just come from him with the details of things he has commanded and things he has forbidden.” The narrator reports, “By Allah! By the same evening every male and female present with Diman became a Muslim.” Abdullah, son of Abbas narrates, “We have never heard of any representative from his tribe who was nobler than Diman, son of Tha’laba.” In the narration of Waqidi, it is mentioned that by the same evening every male and female present with Dimam became a Muslim and that they built a Mosque and made the call to prayer. THE VISION OF AMR, SON OF MURRAH JUHANI Amr, son of Murrah narrates the he had performed the pilgrimage with a group of his people during the Time of Ignorance and that when he was in Mecca he had a vision in which he saw a light rising from the Ka’bah that extended its illumination as far as the mountains of Yathrib (Medina) and to the Ash’ar mountains in the region of the tribe of Juhayna. He also heard a voice in the light saying, “Darkness has been dispersed, light has spread and the Seal of the Prophets has been sent.” Then he saw another light which illumined for him the palaces of Hira and the white buildings of Mada’in. Once again he heard a voice in the light saying, ‘Islam has become manifest, the idols are destroyed and family ties are fostered.” He woke up with a fright and said to his people, “By Allah! Something astounding is about to take place amongst the tribe of Koraysh” then he related the vision to them. Upon reaching his home, Amr, son of Murrah, he heard the news that a person called Ahmad had been sent as a Messenger. Having hearing this news he left home and journeyed to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him. When he reached him, Amr told the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, about his vision. The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, said, “O Amr, son of Murrah, I am the Messenger of Allah sent to all mankind. I invite you to Islam and order you to protect life, foster good family ties, to worship Allah alone, to forsake idols, to offer the pilgrimage to Ka’bah and to fast the month of Ramadan, which is one of the twelve months of the year. Whosoever accepts this will enter Paradise, but whosoever disobeys will enter the Fire of Hell. O Amr, son of Murrah accept belief and Allah will rescue you from the terrors of Hell.” Amr said, “I bear witness that there is no god except Allah and that you are the Messenger of Allah. I believe in what you have brought, the permissible and the forbidden, even though a great number of people reject it. Amr’s tribe had a lot of idols and his father was their custodian. However, Amr, son of Murrah broke the idols before going to meet the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him. (After accepting Islam) Amr recited the couplets he had composed when he heard the news of the advent of the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him: ‘I bear witness that Allah is true and without doubt I am the first to forsake the gods of stone I have folded my wraps to migrate. Over difficult roads and inhospitable lands I travel to you (O Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him) to be in your company. Who is the best of people in character and lineage who is the Messenger of the Sovereign of mankind and everything above the heavens.” After listening to Amr’s recitation, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, congratulated him on his composition. Amr said to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, “May my parents be sacrificed for you! Please send me to my people, perhaps Allah will bestow His Grace on them as He bestowed His Grace on me through you.” Before the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, sent him, he advised him saying, “Always adopt gentleness and honest speech. Never be ill-tempered, proud or jealous.” When Amr went to his people he said, “O Rifa’ah, or I should say O gathering of the Juhayna tribe, I have been sent to you by the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, to invite you to accept Islam, and order you to protect life, foster good family relationships, to worship Allah alone, to forsake idols, to offer the pilgrimage to Ka’bah and to fast the month of Ramadan, which is one of the twelve months of the year. Whosoever accepts this will enter Paradise but whosoever disobeys shall enter the Fire of Hell. O gathering of Juhayna, Allah has made you the best of the Arab tribes and even in the Time of Ignorance you detested the evil practices that other Arab tribes enjoyed. They would join two sisters in one marriage, wage wars during the Sacred months and succeed their fathers as husbands of their mothers. Accept the call of the Prophet, and you will attain the honor of this world and great distinction in the Hereafter.” Out of all the members of the tribe only one person came to him saying, “O Amr, son of Murrah, may Allah make your life bitter! Do you order us to forsake our gods and create division among ourselves. Do you order us to oppose the religion of our forefathers who were all of extremely high character and adopt the religion towards which the person of the Koraysh from the people of Tihama is calling? We have neither love nor respect for him.” The wretched person the proceeded to recite the following couplets: ‘The son of Murrah has come with a statement a statement that cannot be from one who wishes reformation I am sure that the words and actions of the son of Murrah will prove to be a lump in the throat even though some time may elapse. He makes fools of our noble predecessors and whoever dares to do this can never attain success.’ Amr said to the man, “May Allah make life bitter for the one of us who is lying. May Allah also make him dumb and blind.” A narrator says, “By Allah! Before the man died, he lost all his teeth, went blind, became insane and was unable to taste any food.” Amr, son of Murrah left his tribal land with those of his people who had accepted Islam and went to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him. Upon their arrival, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, welcomed them and also called for a scribe so that he might dictated a letter to their people. The letter read: “In the Name of Allah, the Merciful, the Most Merciful This is a letter from the Mighty Allah expressed on the tongue of His Messenger who has come with the absolute truth and a Book that speaks the truth. It (the letter) is entrusted to Amr, son of Murrah and addressed to the tribe of Juhayna, son of Zaid. You may have for yourselves the low-lying lands and plains as well as the hills and the valleys. You may also reap its crops and drink its water. All this is conditional that you pay one-fifth of the booty, offer the five prayers, give two goats (as zakat) for every flock of sheep or goats when they are together (and number between 120 and 200), and one goat for every flock that is separate (and number between 40 and 119). There will be no obligatory charity (zakat) on animals used for plowing fields, or for drawing water. Allah and all the Muslims present are witness to this settlement between us.” The scribe who wrote this letter was Qais, son of Shammas. THE PREACHING OF URWA, SON OF MASOOD TO THE TRIBE OF THAKIF Urwah, son of Zubair narrates that when the Muslims commenced their pilgrimage Urwa, son of Masood went to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, as a Muslim. When he requested permission to return to his tribe and preach Islam, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon, said, “I fear they will kill you.” Urwa said, “(They have so much respect for me that) if they find me asleep, they would not even wake me up.” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, gave him permission to return to his tribe. Night had fallen when he arrived back home and all the tribe of the Thakif came out to greet him. However, when he started to call them to Islam, they leveled accusations against him, and because furious. They swore at him and finally killed him. The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, said, “Urwa’s example is like that of the man in the chapter Yaseen who called his people to Allah and they killed him.” THE MARTYDOM OF URWA, SON OF MASOOD The following is an extract taken from a hadith reported by numerous scholars. Urwa, son of Masood reached home at night and went to his house. The people from the tribe of Thakif went to his house to greet him in the manner people usually greeted during the Time of Ignorance. He refused to allow their greeting and said, “You should adopt the greeting of the people of Paradise and that is ‘peace’.” Upon hearing this, the people started to hurl abuse at him, and hit him, but he was patient. They left him and started to discuss (what action to take) against him. At the break of dawn, Urwa went up to his balcony and made the call for prayer. The people of the Thakif came out of their homes from all directions. A man by the name of Aws, son of Auf from the tribe of Banu Malik fired an arrow at Urwa that pierced an artery and he bled profusely. Upon seeing this Ghaylan, son of Salma, Kinana, son of Abd Yaleel, Hakam, son of Amr and several prominent figures of the tribes allied to the Thakif took up arms and grouped together. They announced, “Either we are killed or in retaliation we shall take the lives of ten of the chieftains of the tribe of Banu Malik.” When Urwa, son of Masood saw what was happening, he said, “Do not take any lives for my sake. I have donated my blood to the person who took it to preserve your unity. This death is a blessing that Allah has bestowed on me for He has bestowed martyrdom on me. I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah because he told me that you would kill me.” Then he called for his family and said, “When I die bury me with those martyrs who were killed while previously fighting (the Thakif) alongside the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, before he left you.” When Urwa died they buried him with the martyred Companions. When the news of his martyrdom reached the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, he said, “Urwa’s example is like that of the man in the chapter Yaseen who called his people to Allah and they killed him.” The narration describing how the Thakif accepted Islam has already been mentioned. THE PREACHING OF TUFAYL , SON OF AMR DOWSI Muhammad, son of Issac narrates that despite the harsh treatment the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, received from his fellow tribesmen, he continued in his effort to guide them and save them from the evils in which they were involved. Allah protected the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, from the Koraysh therefore when other Arabs came to Mecca to meet him the Koraysh would warn them against him. Tufayl, son of Amr was a highly respect and intelligent poet. He narrates that he arrived in Mecca during the time the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, still lived there, and that some Korayshites approached him and asked, “O Tufayl, you have come to our city. There is a person amongst us who has caused us great hardship and brought about our distunity. His speech is bewitching and has caused division between fathers and their sons, between brothers, and husbands and wives. We fear that you and your tribe will suffer as we have. Do not speak to him or even listen to him.” Tufayl says, “By Allah, they did not ceased until I resolved not to listen to anything the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, said. Such was their effect on me that I stuffed pieces of wool in my ears so that when I went to the Mosque the following morning his words would not reach me and that I would not intentionally listen to him.” Tufayl continues, “When I went to the Mosque in the morning, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, was standing there offering his prayer near the Ka’bah. I stood close to him and Allah destined that I should hear some of His words. What I heard were excellent words and I said to myself, ‘Shame on you, I am supposed to be an intelligent poet who can distinguish between good and bad. What prevents me from listening to what this man has to say? If what he says is good I will accept it, but if not I will ignore it.’” Tufayl waited until the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, left for his home and followed him. As the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace entered his home Tufayl met him and told him what the Koraysh had told him and said, “By Allah, they were so convincing that I even plugged my ears with wool so that I would not hear your words, but Allah destined me to hear your recitation. What I heard were the most excellent words, tell me more.” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, recited some verses from the Koran to him and Tufayl said, “I swear by Allah that I have never heard words more beautiful nor any matter as balanced (as Islam).” Tufayl accepted Islam and recited the witnessing of belief, then said, “O Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, my people obey me so I will return to them and invite them to Islam. Supplicate for me to Allah to grant me a sign which will assist me in inviting them.” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, supplicated, “O Allah, grant him a sign.” Tufayl said that he went to his people and was at a place in a valley from which he could see his people (at a distance) when a light like a lantern radiated from between his eyes whereupon he supplicated, “O Allah, not on my face because my people will think it is a form of punishment affecting my face because I left their religion.” He further narrated, “The light then moved to the top of my whip and those who were present (further down the valley) pointed out the light which resembled a suspended lantern on the whip to each other, and he made his way down the valley towards them. He said that when he reached them it was still morning. Tufayl continued and said that when he came to his people, his father who was a very old man came to him and that Tufayl told him, “Stay away from me, O father because you are not mine and I am not yours,” so his father asked, “Why is that O my beloved son,” Tufyal replied, “It is because I have accepted Islam and am a follower of Muhammad.” Tufyal’s father told him, “Your religion is my religion.” Thereafter his father took a shower, cleansed his cloths and returned to Tufyal who spoke to him about Islam and he accepted. When his wife came to him, Tufayl repeated what he had said to his father and she asked why it was saying, “May my parents be sacrificed for you!” Tufayl replied, “Islam has separated me from you.” She too accepted Islam, and Tufayl then reports that thereafter he invited the rest of the tribe of Dows to Islam, but they were reluctant. Tufayl returned to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, in Mecca and requested him saying, “O Prophet of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, the tribe of Dows has overpowered me, invoke the curse of Allah upon them.” (Instead), the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, supplicated, “O Allah, guide the tribe of Dows.” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, told Tufayl to return to his people and preach, and to be gentle with them. Tufayl returned to his people and continued to preach to them throughout the period of the Messenger of Allah’s migration (to Medina), the conflicts of Badr, Uhud and the Trench. Thereafter Tufayl, together with either seventy or eighty families from his tribe of Dows who had accepted Islam went to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him in Medina. Abdullah, son of Abbas also narrated from Tufayl, son of Amr the story of how he accepted Islam and brought his father and wife into the fold of Islam, and of his arrival in Mecca all of which is mentioned in the previous hadith. In addition Abdullah reports that the Tufayl was sent by the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, to burn an idol called Dhul Mayn. He also mentions that thereafter Tufayl left for Yamamah where he had a vision and was martyred during the Battle of Yamamah. Another narration states that when Tufayl arrived in Mecca, some people from the Koraysh told him about the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, and requested his to assess the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, for them. Accordingly Tufayl went to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, and recited some of his poetry to him. Thereafter, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, recited the chapters “The Oneness”, “Daybreak” and “People” to him and he embraced Islam then returned to his people. The narration then goes on to speak of the whip and its light. It also states that when Tufayl invited his parents to Islam his father accepted but his mother did not, and that when he invited his tribesmen, it was only Abu Hurayrah who accepted. The narration continues to say that Tufayl went to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, and said in reference to the territory belonging to the tribe of Dows, (which Tufayl wanted the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, to curse because they remained in disbelief and then seize their land), “Would you like a fortified stronghold with strong defenses?” But instead of the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, cursing them he supplicated for them. Upon hearing the supplication of the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, Tufayl said, “This is not what I wanted.” Whereupon the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, replied, “There are many who are just like you.” Jundub, son of Amr, son of Humam, son of Auf was a tribesman of the tribe of Dows who would say during the Time of Ignorance, “I know that the creation has a Creator, but I do not know who it is.” When he heard of the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, he went to him with seventy-five men from his tribe and they all accepted Islam. Abu Hurayrah narrates that Jundub presented each of the men individually to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him. May Allah be pleased with all the Companions.