The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) – Volume III — Page 130
Seal of the Prophets - Volume III 130 anxiety, the Quraish had sent him without waiting for the return of Mikraz. Upon noticing the arrival of Suhail, the Holy Prophet sa said, “Here comes Suhail. 1 If God wills, now the matter shall become easy for us. ” 2 Mischief by the Infidels of Makkah At this point, the mention of a related but important occurrence is necessary. When ambassadors from the Quraish began to come one after another, the Holy Prophet sa felt that a wise person on his behalf should also go to the Quraish, who would be able to present the viewpoint of the Muslims sympathetically and with wisdom. A man named Khirāsh bin Umaiyyah, who was from the Khuzā‘ah tribe, i. e. , the same tribe from which the first ambassador of the Quraish Budail bin Warqā came, was selected for this purpose. For this mission, the Holy Prophet sa granted Khirāsh his own camel for transport. Khirāsh went to the Quraish, but since this was still the early stages of negotiations and the young men from the Quraish were extremely enraged, a fanatical young man from among the Quraish, ‘Ikrimah bin Abī Jahl, attacked and wounded the camel of Khirāsh. By Arab custom, this meant that they were forcefully stopping his movements. Additionally, this extremist group from among the Quraish desired to attack Khirāsh as well, but the elders intervened and saved his life. He then returned to his camp. 3 The Quraish of Makkah did not suffice at this, rather in the blindness of their rage they also intended that now as the Holy Prophet sa and his companions were so close to Makkah and so very far from Madīnah, an attack should be launched against him, so that he may be harmed as much as possible. For this purpose, they dispatched a party of about 40 to 50 men towards Ḥudaibiyyah and in the veil of negotiations, these people were instructed to circle the Muslim camp and whenever possible, continue injuring the 1 The word Suhail has been derived from the Arabic word Sahl which means, ‘ease. ’ 2 * Ṣaḥīḥul-Bukhārī, Kitābush-Shurūṭ, Bābush-Shurūṭi Fil-Jihādi. . . , Ḥadīth No. 2731-2732 * Sharḥul-‘Allāmatiz-Zarqānī ‘Alal-Mawāhibil-Ladunniyyah, By Allāmah Shihābuddīn Al-Qusṭalānī, Volume 3, pp. 195-197, Amrul-Ḥudaibiyyah, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996) 3 * As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Mālik bin Hishām, p. 685, Amrul- Ḥudaibiyyati Fī Ākhiri Sanati Sittin/Khirāsh-ubnu Umaiyyata Rasūlu Rasūlillāhi Ilā Quraish, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001) * Sharḥul-‘Allāmatiz-Zarqānī ‘Alal-Mawāhibil-Ladunniyyah, By Allāmah Shihābuddīn Al-Qusṭalānī, Volume 3, p. 222, Amrul-Ḥudaibiyyah, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996)