The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) – Volume III — Page 8
Seal of the Prophets - Volume III 8 words, the meaning is that an infidel remains engrossed in worldly comforts and all his attention is spent in worldly affairs, but a believer restrains himself from the comforts of this world and does not cross the boundary of necessity, because the true means of his delight is something else. This teaching is a true illustration of the natural inclination and personal character of the Holy Prophet sa. After becoming a Muslim, Thumāmah ra said to the Holy Prophet sa , “O Messenger of Allāh! When your men captured me I was on my way to the Ka‘bah for ‘Umrah. 1 What do you now order?” The Holy Prophet sa granted him permission and prayed, and Thumāmah ra left for Makkah. 2 Due to the passion of his faith, upon reaching there he began to preach openly within the Quraish. At this sight, the eyes of the Quraish gorged with blood in extreme rage. They captured Thumāmah ra and planned to kill him, but upon the thought that he was the chieftain of the region of Yamāmah, and keeping in mind that Makkah had historic trade relations with Yamāmah, they abandoned this idea and released him, after some mere verbal abuse. 3 However, the disposition of Thumāmah ra was full of passion and all the cruelties inflicted upon the Holy Prophet sa and his companions were before his eyes. Upon leaving Makkah, he addressed the Quraish saying, “By God, from now on you shall not receive a grain of corn from the region of Yamāmah until the Holy Prophet sa grants permission. ” 4 Upon reaching his homeland, Thumāmah ra actually stopped the caravans of import and export to Makkah and since a large portion of Makkah’s food supply came from Yamāmah, upon the halt of this trade, Makkah underwent a great trial. Not long had passed before they became worried and wrote a letter to the Holy Prophet sa , that he always instructed the kind treatment of relatives, and they who were their brothers were trapped, so 1 Lesser Pilgrimage in which some of the rites of the Ḥajj are left out. ‘Umrah can be performed at any time during the year. (Publishers) 2 * Ṣaḥīḥul-Bukhārī, Kitābul-Maghāzī, Bābu Wafdi Banī Ḥanīfah. . . , Ḥadīth No. 4372 * Ṣaḥīḥu Muslim, Kitābul-Jihād, Bābu Rabṭil-Asīri Wa Ḥabsihī Wa Jawāzil-Manni ‘Alaihi, Ḥadīth No 4589 3 As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Mālik bin Hishām, p. 888, Asru Thumāmat- abni Uthālin Al-Ḥanfiyyi Wa Islāmuhu. . . , Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001) 4 * Ṣaḥīḥul-Bukhārī, Kitābul-Maghāzī, Bābu Wafdi Banī Ḥanīfah. . . , Ḥadīth No. 4372 * Ṣaḥīḥu Muslim, Kitābul-Jihād, Bābu Rabṭil-Asīri Wa Ḥabsihī Wa Jawāzil-Manni ‘Alaihi, Ḥadīth No 4589