The System of Mushawarat in Jama'at-e-Ahmadiyya — Page 10
T he S ystem of M ushawarat in J am a ‘ at - e -A hmadiy ya during the Battle o f Ahzab. When the siege o f Medina had dragged too long, Banu Ghatfan, one o f the Mec cans’ allies, became restless. They sent one o f their chiefs, Harith Ghatfani, as an emissary to the Holy Prophetsa and offered that if they were given half the produce o f Medina as ransom, they would break ranks with the Meccans. It should be remembered that Banu Ghatfan were an extremely greedy and selfish tribe. They would join any group that could bribe them to their satisfaction. In the Battle of Ahzab, the Jews had secured their support by promising them half the income from Khyber. Hence, when the Holy Prophet8 3 took up their proposal with Hadrat Sa‘d bin ‘Ubadah1 3 and Hadrat Sa‘d bin M u‘adhra, they said, “O Prophet o f Allah, if this is a Divine decree, then we dare not disagree. But if it is our advice you seek, then we humbly submit that in the past no one has ever dared to extract ransom from the people o f Medina. How then can we accept such degrading terms after Islam has dignified us? We would rather die fighting than accept such conditions. ” Thereafter, the Holy Prophetsa ceased all negotiations with the Banu Ghatfan. [SIrat Ibn-e-Hisham, vol. II, p. 257; Hayat-e-Muhanimad, by Muhammad Hussain Haikal, pp. 419-420] A nother I nstance of C onsultation by the H oly P rophet " Another example o f consultation by the Holy Prophet83 is found in relation to the Battle o f Hunayn. The victory o f Mecca was an occasion of great delight for the 10