Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets — Page 211
MUHAMMAD : SEAL OF THE PROPHETS 211 never recovered her normal health and in the end she died from the effects of the shock. Those of the prisoners who were too poor to pay ransom were released as a matter of favour. Those of them who were literate were released on condition that they should teach reading and writing to ten Muslims. Zaid bin Thabet, who subsequently acted as the secretary of the Holy Prophet, was one of those who had learned reading and writing under this direction of the Holy Prophet. One of the prisoners was Suhail bin Amr who was a leading personality of Quraish and was a great orator, who often delivered addresses against the Holy Prophet. Umar suggested that his front teeth should be extracted, so that he might be disabled from hold ing forth against the Holy Prophet. But the latter greatly disapproved of this suggestion and observed, ‘Umar, how do you know that God may not place him in a position later which should be praiseworthy?’ Suhail embraced Islam on the occasion of the fall o f Mecca and after the death of the Holy Prophet, peace be on him, he delivered effective addresses which helped to confirm many people in their faith, and thus through Suhail’s efforts they were safeguarded against apostasy. On one occasion in the time of Umar, Abu Sufyan and some other leading Quraish who had embraced Islam on the occasion of the fall of Mecca came to see Umar along with Suhail, and it so chanced that at the same time Bilal, Ammar and Suhaib, who were freedmen and were very poor but had em braced Islam in the early years, also arrived to see Umar. When the latter was informed of the people waiting to see him, he directed that Bilal and his companions may