Flight to Medina Muhammad and Islam Stories Not Told Before

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Flight to Medina

Muhammad and Islam Stories not told beforewww.faithfreedom. org

by Mohammad Asghar The oasis of Yathrib, now called ‘al-Medina,’ i.e. ‘the City of the Prophet,’ is located some twohundred and fifty miles north of Mecca on the ancient caravan route that connected Mecca withSyria. In old times, Meccan Arabs used to travel to this distant land to sell what they had in their landand to buy from it all of the essential commodities they needed to support their bare existence.The settlements of Yathrib differed fundamentally from the township of Mecca. The latter possessedonly a few shallow wells in a dry watercourse; the water was frequently insufficient even for drinkingpurpose. It possessed no vegetation, and agriculture was impossible. This little settlement, enclosedby bare, rocky mountains, shimmered beneath a scorching sun. There was nothing in Mecca to liveon; its people earned their bread by serving the pilgrims, who came to Mecca to pay homage to their idol gods. Others were compelled to seek their livelihood elsewhere, by trade to the Yemen, Egypt,Syria and Persia. Mecca was the base, from which all caravans set out on their long journeys, and towhich they returned with precious commodities, including foodstuff, which they procured in thosedistant lands.The economic condition of Yathrib was entirely different. An ample supply of water and a wide valleybetween the mountains gave full scope to agriculture. The whole valley was pleasantly verdant withcrops with well-planted gardens of date palms.The inhabitants of the Yathrib oasis lived principally on agriculture, and on a limited number of domestic animals. The population maintained its tribal character. Each tribe owned its own area of cultivation, in the center of which they had built their own fortified villages. The valley, therefore,appeared green and refreshing to eyes, dotted here and there with small villages, a serene scenethat easily put to rest the minds of the tired and the restless in no time.In the era we are writing about, five small tribes inhabited Yathrib, with the members of each tribebeing, perhaps, very small. Three of those tribes, known as Bani Qaynuqa, Bani Nadir and BaniQuraiza, professed Jewish faith. No record exists to tell us whether those people were thedescendents of the tribe of Judah from Jerusalem, or whether they were ethnically Arabs, who hadbeen converted to Judaism, as were the Jews of the Yemen, a long time ago.Those Jews outwardly resembled the Arabs and spoke Arabic like their other contemporaries.Practicing a relatively enlightened religion, the judaistic tribes worked as artisans in various craftsand were much richer than their Pagan neighbors. They were also moneylenders, a business withwhich they are identified even today.The Jewish tribes had schools, where rabbis gave lessons on Torah and other Jewish scriptures.Presumably all or nearly all of their men were able to read and write. Those Jews also believed andpreached the coming of a redeemer in a very foreseeable future. They were, as such, mentallyprepared to welcome him, when he appeared in their midst.The other tribes of the Yathrib were the Aus and the Khazraj, who practiced the popular paganism of Arabia. As required by their religion, they sent a selected number of worshippers every year onpilgrimage to Ka’aba - the shrine of idols in Mecca.The Aus and Khazraj tribes were generally poor. Most of them were employed by the Jews. Theyalso borrowed money from them and remained heavily indebted to them. It is said that only one set

of bridal clothing and ornaments existed in the whole oasis. When a Pagan girl was to be married,the necessary finery had to be rented from a Jew. Because of their economic affluence andsuperiority, the Jews were not much liked by their poor Pagan debtors. Despite their dislike of them,most poor Pagans had no other way, but to remain under their influence and control. On account of their economic power, Muhammad, after living among them for some time, also developed a severedislike for them. The extent of his animosity toward the Jews is fully described in the Quran.Possibly in 616 A.D., a member of the Aus tribe gave his protection to a Bedouin, who was thenvisiting the oasis. In retaliation, a member of the Khazraj tribe paid a Jew to smack the face of theBedouin. His protector took steps to defend his protégé and killed the Jew who had, in themeantime, struck the Bedouin. The Khazrajites, failing to nab the Jew’s killer, killed, instead, another man of the Ausite; thus giving birth to a bloody feud that was destined to last for as long as it wasnecessary for both the tribes to avenge the deaths. Consequently, a series of battles took placebetween the Aus and Khazraj tribes, the latest culminating in the victory of the Aus over its enemyafter a long period of time.Because of the circumstances described, life in Yathrib continued to be precarious, for all the warringtribes lived quite close to each other. In the battles that ensued between the Aus and Khazraj, thechief of the latter tribe, Abdullah ibn Ubayy, held moderate views and a peaceful temperament. Henot only had refused to take part in the feud; he also used all his efforts to end the fratricidal strifebetween the warring factions. Of him, we shall learn more as our narrative progresses.A distant away from Yathrib, Muhammad, deprived of the benefaction of his wife Khudeija and theprotection of his uncle Abu Talib, was finding his fortunes in his native land, dwindling to the bottom.He was finding himself increasingly constrained in all aspects of his life. He was feeling frustratedwith the pace of conversion among the Meccan infidels, a reality that convinced him that most of thePagans were never going to accept his religion. The debacle of Taif reminded him how difficult itwould be for him to walk into a city, to seek help and shelter.Deciding that to continue his mission with the Meccans would bear him no fruits, he discontinued hispreaching in Mecca. Instead, he started paying attention, for quite a while, to those nomadictribesmen and strangers who visited Mecca on pilgrimage or on trade. Eventually, this diversion alsoproved to be unsatisfactory, for, in spite of his best efforts, he had failed to elicit sufficient positiveresponses from those pilgrims whom he approached for quite some time. He was in a dilemma,knowing not what would be the result of his next step. The more he thought about his predicament,the more constrained he felt. After a lot of thoughts, he concluded that he needed to find a placewhose inhabitants would be willing to receive him as an honored guest and bestow on him theprivileges that would allow him to propagate his faith without any fear or obstruction. Abyssinia, inthis context, was out of question, because it was a pre-dominantly Christian country. He aspired for adifferent place. In order to let his desire come true, he decided to wait.It was, perhaps, in the year 620 A.D. that Muhammad noticed the arrival of some pilgrims fromYathrib and took the opportunity to engage them in a conversation. A group of seven or eightpersons belonging to both the tribes of Aus and Khazraj was impressed by what he told them aboutthe Oneness of Allah and the futility of paganism. The Khazrajites thought he was the same Messiahwhom the Jews of Yathrib were expecting, while others considered the possibility of using him as amediator or peacemaker in their volatile oasis. Both groups of those people were, however, of theidentical view that they should use the man and his abilities to further their neglected causes. Theyreturned to Yathrib, exploring and debating all the possibilities.The following year, a group of twelve men, including those of the previous year, came back to Meccato perform their hajj. Muhammad met them in a little valley of the mountains and read them some of the verses he told them he had received from Allah. All the twelve Yathribis declared themselves

convinced, and made a final profession of faith. Since the converts were the most influential amongthe members of an otherwise powerful tribe, Muhammad sought their protection and proposed toaccompany them on their return. The converts informed him of the deadly feud that was thenexisting in their city, and asked him to defer his arrival in Yathrib to a time that would suite him andhis hosts. They, however, suggested that he send a man along with them to instruct and strengthenthe faith of those Yathribis who, under their influence, had converted to Islam a year ago.Muhammad agreed and sent Musab ibn Omar, one of the most learned and able of his disciples, notonly to teach the neo-Muslims the tenets of Islam, but also to propagate it among other Yathribis,who practiced Paganism, Judaism and Christianity. In this way, the seed of Islam began to sprout inYathrib and its neighborhoods.Musab ibn Omar often faced threats to his life, yet he persisted in his preaching. His tenacity paid off and he succeeded in converting some of the city’s important inhabitants. Among them were Saad ibnMaad, a chief of the Ausites, and Osaid ibn Hedheir, a man of great authority. During this period of time, some Muslims of Mecca, driven out by the pagan harassment and hunger, also arrived andtook refuge in Yathrib. They joined Musab and helped him in taking the propaganda of Islam to thefootsteps of other inhabitants of the city. Some of its inhabitants saw their economic emancipation inIslam and felt inclined to embrace its doctrines for their own good. Thus, in a short period of twoyears, those people succeeded in bringing to Islam a good number of the Pagans, a feat thatMuhammad had failed to achieve in thirteen years of his preaching in Mecca.Muhammad as well as those who had promised him sanctuary had been keeping a watchful eye onthe changing situation of the city. When they felt confident of giving him shelter, more than seventy of them, led by Musab ibn Omar, accompanied the hajj delegation to Mecca in the holy month of 622A.D. for the purpose of inviting him to take up his residence in Yathrib.To keep the matter confidential, the emissaries from Yathrib arranged a midnight meeting withMuhammad in the company of his uncle al-Abbas. They met them on the hill of Aqaba, where theypledged to support Muhammad upon his migration to their city. This pledge is known as the pledgeof Aqaba or the “pledge of women” because it involved a promise of loyalty, but no obligation to fight.Other terms of the pledge included a promise on the part of the Yathribis to abjure idolatry and toworship the one true Allah, openly and fearlessly. To safeguard himself, Muhammad exactedunflinching obedience in weal or woe; and for those of the disciples who might accompany him,protection. All terms decided, he committed himself to take up residence in their midst and to remainwith them, to be friends of their friends, and the enemy of their enemies. “But, should we perish inyour cause,” they asked, “what will be our reward?” “Paradise!” Muhammad assured them.After concluding the agreement as aforesaid, the emissaries placed their hands in the hands of Muhammad and swore to abide by the compact. He then singled out twelve persons from amongthem and designated them as his apostles; following, we suppose, the example of Jesus Christ. Butas the allegiance was being sworn, they heard a voice coming from the summit of the hill, which notonly denounced them as apostates; it also threatened them with punishment. In the darkness andthe solitude of the night, the voice appeared awesome to the emissaries and they blanched. “It is thevoice of the fiend Iblis,” said Muhammad scornfully. “He is the foe of Allah: fear him not.”In reality, it was the voice of a Quraishite spy; for, the very next morning, the Quraish exhibited aknowledge of what had transpired between Muhammad and the Yathribis emissaries during the nightand threatened the new confederates with great harshness as they departed from the city. Theholiness of the month restrained the Quraishites from becoming violent; otherwise the Yathribiswould have suffered great harm to their persons.

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