Life of Muhammad — Page 174
sa 174 raising an army to put an end to the Movement of Islam. But a change had come. An erstwhile enemy commander now stood by the Prophet's sa side, as an ordinary foot-soldier, holding the stirrup of his Master's mule, and determined to die for his sake. ‘ Abb a s ra saw the astonishment in the Prophet's sa look and said, "Prophet sa of God, this is Ab u Sufy a n ra , son of your uncle, and so your brother. Aren't you pleased with him?" "I am," said the Prophet sa , "and I pray, God may forgive him all the wrongs he has done. " Then turning to Ab u Sufy a n ra himself, he said, "Brother!" Ab u Sufy a n ra could not restrain the affection welling up in his heart. He bent and kissed the Prophet's sa foot in the stirrup he was holding ( H albiyya ). After the battle of H unain, the Prophet sa returned the war material he had received on loan. While returning it he compensated the lenders many times over. Those who had made the loan were touched by the care and consideration which the Prophet sa had shown in returning the material and in compensating the lenders. They felt the Prophet sa was no ordinary man, but one whose moral example stood high above others. No wonder, S afw a n ra joined Islam at once. A SWORN ENEMY BECOMES A DEVOTED FOLLOWER The battle of H unain ever reminds historians of another interesting incident which took place while it was in progress. Shaiba ra , a resident of Mecca and in the service of the Ka‘ba , took part in the encounter on the side of the enemy. He says that he had only one aim before him in this battle — that when the two armies met, he would find an opportunity to kill the Prophet sa. He was determined that even if the whole world joined the Prophet sa (let alone the whole of Arabia), he would stand out and continue to oppose Islam. When fighting