Understanding Islam — Page 197
195 Before the arrival of Islam in Mad ī nah, the Aus and Khazraj tribes had a highly superstitious and degrading practice that if a father remained childless for a long time he would take a pledge that if a son were born to him, he would have him converted to Judaism and actually raised up by the Jews. When the Jewish tribe, Ban ū Nadh ī r, due to their repeated acts of deceit were ordered to leave Mad ī nah, they were ready to take a large number of boys with them who belonged to the above two tribes. The Aus and Khazraj tribes, who had since then embraced Islam resented their own children being taken away by the Jews and insisted on their being kept back and converted to Islam, by force, if necessary. This became a delicate situation when the dispute arose regarding the custody of the boys – whether they were to remain with their real parents, or their adopted parents. Muslim parents could not entertain the idea of allowing their own sons to go into banishment with the Jews. The Jews on the other hand were equally insistent on taking them along. When the dispute was brought to Prophet Muhammad sa , he made a decision using the golden