The Excellent Exemplar - Muhammad — Page 32
THE EXCELLENT EXEMPLAR — MUHAMMAD 32 moving about. He was much afraid, knowing that if their hiding place were discovered, serious harm would come to the Prophet. When he mentioned his fear, the Prophet replied: “Grieve not. We are not two only; there is a third with us, even God” (9:40). The pursuers returned to Mecca foiled in their immediate objective, but still firm in their purpose. They announced that anybody who brought back the fugitives alive or dead would receive a reward of one hundred camels. This was widely proclaimed around Me cca. The Prophet and Abu Bakr spent two nights and two days in the cave. Each night a shepherd in the employ of Abu Bakr, who had been instructed to graze his goats near the cave, brought a she - goat to the entrance of the cave and milked it for the benefit of h is master and his friend. Some provisions were also sent from Mecca by Abu Bakr’s daughter, Asma. On the second night, Abu Bakr sent a message to a servant in Mecca, asking him to bring to the cave the following evening the two camels which Abu Bakr had sp ecially reserved for this occasion, along with a trusted guide who could lead them to Medina. The party of four then started on the journey to Medina. They had not proceeded far from Mecca when a Bedouin chief, Suraqa, attempted to intercept them, hoping to turn them over to the Meccans and thus earn the proffered reward. He was dissuaded from his purpose, made his submission to the Prophet, and then the party proceeded on their journey. Ten days after leaving Mecca, the small party arrived within sight of Medina, where they were joyfully welcomed by the Muslims from Medina and those from Mecca who had preceded