The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) - Volume I — Page 254
Seal of the Prophets - Volume I 254 man shall ruin your faith, while your religion is better than his. ” 1 The Holy Prophet sa rested in this orchard for some time. He then departed from here and arrived at Nakhlah, which is situated at a distance of approximately one day’s journey from Makkah, and remained there for a few days. After this, the Holy Prophet sa departed and reached the mountain of Ḥirā, and since the apparent failure at Ṭā’if entailed the possibility of the Makkans growing overly bold, the Holy Prophet sa sent word to Muṭ‘im bin ‘Adiyy that I wish to enter Makkah, can you help me in this regard? Although Muṭ‘im was a firm disbeliever, his disposition possessed graciousness, and in times like these, it was against the nature of noble Arabs to refuse. For this reason, along with his sons and relatives, fully armed, they stood by the Ka‘bah, and sent word to the Holy Prophet sa that he may enter. The Holy Prophet sa entered and performed the Ṭawāf of the Ka‘bah, and along with Muṭ‘im and his children, escorted under the shadow of swords, the Holy Prophet sa entered his home. On the way, when Abū Jahl witnessed Muṭ‘im in this state, he was astonished and inquired, ٌ اَمُجِیْر ٌ اَم ْ تَابِع meaning, “Have you given Muḥammad [sa] refuge, or have you become a follower?” Muṭ‘im responded, “I am only one to give refuge, not a follower. ” Upon this Abū Jahl said, “Alright, then there is no problem. ” Muṭ‘im died in a state of disbelief, but the Muslims were not ones to lose sight of rightly due value. Alluding to the gracious treatment of Muṭ‘im, Ḥassān bin Thābit ra , who was practically the court-poet of the Holy Prophet sa , said many passionate couplets in his praise, which have been vouchsafed in his collection to this day. 2 The journey to Ṭā’if was a special occurrence in the life of the Holy Prophet sa. The details of this journey shed light on the lofty magnificence of the Holy Prophet sa , his astronomical magnanimity, and his incomparable patience and steadfastness. As such, Sir William Muir writes: “There is something lofty and heroic in this journey of Moḥammad to Aṭ-Ṭā’if; a solitary man, despised and rejected by his own people, going boldly forth in the name of God, like Jonah to Nineveh, and summoning an idolatrous city to repent and support his mission. It sheds a strong light on the intensity of his 1 * As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Malik bin Hishām, pp. 301-302, Bābu Sa‘yur- Rasūli ilā Thaqīfin Yaṭlubun-Nuṣrah, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001) * Tārīkhuṭ-Ṭabarī, By Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad bin Al-Jarīr Ṭabarī, Volume 2, pp. 241-242, Bābu Dhikril-Khabri ‘ammā kāna min Amri Nabiyyillāhi sa ‘inda Ibtidā’illāhi Ta‘ālā. . . . . . , Dārul-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, Second Edition (2002) 2 Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, Kitābu Bad’il-Khalq, Bābu Idhā Qāla Aḥadukum Āmīn, Ḥadīth No. 3231