Sahaba 12-aws-and-khazraj

THE PROPHET’S INVITATION TO
THE SIX TRIBESMEN
OF AWS AND KHAZRAJ
FROM YATHRIB AND THEIR
PLEDGE
Hayatus Sahabah by Muhadith Kandahlawi (Kandhelvi)
Rendered into current English
by
Khadeijah Abdullah Darwish (Anne Stephens)
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THE PROPHET’S INVITATION TO SIX MEN
FROM THE MEDINA TRIBES OF AWS AND KHAZRAJ
Ali, the son of Abi Talib mentioned the virtues of the Ansars and drew the congregation’s
attention to the fact that they were the pioneers who supported the Messenger of Allah,
praise and peace be upon him, at the spread of Islam. Ali said, “The person who does
not like the Ansar and does not honor the rights due to them is not a believer. By Allah,
they used their swords, power of persuasion and their generous hearts to nurture Islam,
just as a mare nurtures her foal in a green pasture.”
Before the tribes of Aws and Khazraj entered the fold of Islam, the Prophet, praise and
peace be upon him, would visit the tribes offering their seasonal pilgrimage and invite
them to Islam. However, none were prepared to accept his message. He would be found
inviting tribes to Islam in the marketplaces of Majinna, Ukaz and Mina and would met
them again the following year as they returned to offer their pilgrimage. Those returning

tribes would say to him, “When will the time come when you give up hope of converting
us, because you have been meeting us for many years.”
However, the situation was to changed when Allah, the All Powerful, honored tribesmen
from the Aws and Khazraj, later to be known as the Ansars, who willingly recognized the
truth the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, and embraced Islam, and
subsequently invited him to live with them in Medina where he could continue his
preaching.
Umm Sa’d daughter of Sa’d, son of Rabee narrated that the Messenger of Allah, praise
and peace be upon him, had been harmed by his people in Mecca and so it was that
Allah conferred the honor of hosting him in Medina which was at that time called Yathrib.
The story unfolds as the pilgrimage season had come around yet again and neared its
conclusion as the pilgrims busied themselves shaving their hair. The Messenger of
Allah, praise and peace be upon him, was in Aqaba preaching at that time and Umm
Sa’d had been a participant in that pilgrimage and was accompanied by her tribes
people from the Aws and Khazraj . She said “There were either six or seven tribesmen
including As’ad, the son of Zurarah, and the two sons of Afraa from the tribe of Banu
Najar (she did not name the others). The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon
him, sat down with them and proceeded to recite to them some verses of the Koran,
whereupon they embraced Islam and agreed to support and ally themselves to him. This
important event became known as “The First Pledging at Aqaba” and the new converts
agreed to meet the following year at the same place and that is when the second
pledging took place. Umm Sa’ad was asked, “How long did the Messenger of Allah,
praise and peace be upon him, stay in Mecca?” She replied, “Have you not heard the
words of Abu Sirma Qais son of Abi Anas?” The inquirer answered that he did not know,
whereupon she quoted the following couplet:
”He stayed with the Koraysh for a few years more than ten
Advising people with hope of meeting a suitable friend.”
Then she proceeded to quote the entire poem, which will, InshaAllah be quoted in the
hadith of Abdullah, son of Abbas in the chapter relating to the help the Companions
rendered to the cause of Islam.
Aqeel, son of Abi Talib and Zuhri spoke of a time when the unbelieving Korayshi were
harassing the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, when he said to his
uncle Abbas, the son of Abul Mutallib “O my beloved uncle, Allah will assist His Religion
with people to whom the oppressive opposition of the Koraysh would seem trivial (in
their opinion) but who will enjoy great honor in the sight of Allah. Take me to the
marketplace of Ukaz and show me where the Arab tribes stay, because I want to call
them to Allah and alliance so that I may preach the Message of Allah to humanity.”
Abbas agreed saying, “O my beloved nephew, proceed to Ukaz and I will accompany
you and show you where the tribes are staying.”
Upon his arrival, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, started first by
inviting the Thaqef to Islam, then proceeded to meet other tribes participating in the
pilgrimage that year.
The following year, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, met six
tribesmen from the Yathrib (Medina) tribes of Aws and Khazraj. They were As’ad son of
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Zurarah, Abul Haytham son of At Tayihan, Abdullah son of Rawaha, Sa’d son of Rabee,
Nu’man son of Haritha and Ubadah son of Samit. The Messenger of Allah, praise and
peace be upon him, met these tribesemen one night at the Jamara of Aqaba at the time
when the pilgrims were staying in Mina. The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be
upon him, invited them believe in Allah and to worship Him alone and to assist him in his
preaching of the Religion of Allah entrusted to the prophets and messengers. When they
asked the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, to tell them more about
what Allah sent him with, the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, recited
the following verses:
“And when Abraham said,
'My Lord, make this a land secure.
Turn me and my children away from worshipping idols.
My Lord they have led many people astray.
Whosoever follows me belongs to me.
Whosoever rebels against me, You are surely Forgiving, the Most Merciful.
Our Lord, I have settled some of my offspring in
a barren valley near Your Holy House; our Lord,
in order that they establish the prayer.
Make the hearts of people yearn towards them,
and provide them with fruits, in order that they are thankful.
Our Lord, You have knowledge of all that we hide and all that we reveal;
nothing in heaven or earth is hidden from Allah.
Praise be to Allah who has given me
Ishmael and Isaac in my old age!
Indeed, my Lord is the Hearer of the supplication.
My Lord, make me and my descendants establishers of prayer.
Our Lord, accept my prayer.
Forgive me, our Lord,
and forgive my parents and all the believers on the Day of Reckoning.'
Do not think that Allah is unaware of the harm doer’s work.
He only gives them respite till the Day on which all eyes will stare,
when they shall run with their necks outstretched and heads erect,
their glances never return to themselves, their hearts are empty.
Warn mankind of the Day when the punishment will overtake them,
when the evildoers will say,
Our Lord, grant us respite for awhile,
we will answer Your call, and follow the Messengers.'
Did you not once swear that you would never cease?
You lived in the dwellings of those who wronged themselves,
and it was clear to you how We dealt with them,
and how We struck parables for you.
They plotted their plots, but their plots are (known) to Allah,
even though their plots were such as to move mountains.
Do not think that Allah will break the promise He gave to His Messengers.
Mighty is Allah, and Vengeful.
On the Day when the earth is changed into
other than the earth and the heavens,
all shall come before Allah, the One, the Conqueror.
On that Day, you shall see the sinners
coupled together in fetters;
their garments shall be of melted tar,
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and their faces enveloped by the Fire.
Allah will recompense each soul according to its earnings.
Swift is the Reckoning of Allah.
This is a message to be delivered to mankind so that
they may be warned by it,
and know that He is (Allah) One God,
and so all those possessed of minds may remember.” Koran Ch.14:35-52
Having heard these verses, their hearts were filled with light and engulfed by the words
of the Koran and they embraced Islam.
As they were absorbed in listening to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon
him, Abbas happened to pass by and upon recognizing the voice of the Messenger of
Allah, praise and peace be upon him, he said, “O my nephew, who are these people with
you?” The Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, said. “These are people
who live in Yathrib (later named Medina) from the tribes of Aws and Khazraj. I preached
to them in the same way I had done so to many other tribes before them, but these
tribesmen have accepted the Message I bring and believe in what I say. They have also
mentioned that they will take me back with them to their city.”
Abbas dismounted from his ride, tied it up and said, “O people of tribes of Aws and
Khazraj, this is my nephew and the person I love most. If you accept his message,
believe him and intend to take him with you to your city, you must make me a promise so
that my heart will be placated. Promise me you will never desert or betray him because
your neighbors are the Jews and the Jews are his enemies. I am fearful that the Jews
will connive against him.”
Upon hearing this, As’ad the son of Zurarah and his companions felt hurt that Abbas had
expressed his mistrust in them, whereupon As’ad asked the permission of the
Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, to permit him to reply to Abbas in a
manner that would neither upset nor appear distasteful to him. As’ad said to the
Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, “Our reply will confirm that we have
accepted your message and it will express our belief in you.” The Messenger of Allah,
praise and peace be upon him, said, “You may reply to him as I have complete
confidence in you.” Then, turning to the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon
him, As’ad said, “O Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, there is a path
to every call. While some paths are easy, others are difficult. Today you have called us
toward something that is both new and difficult for people to accept. You have called us
to forsake our religions and to follow you in your Religion. This is not an easy task.
However, we have accepted your Call. You have called us to sever our ties with both
close and distant relatives (by following you rather than them). This is not an easy task.
You have invited us to Islam. We are a strong group living in a place that is powerful and
mighty, none could ever imagine that our leader would be someone who is not from
among us. This is not an easy task but we have accepted it. These things appear difficult
for all except those whose welfare Allah has decided and who foresee good in its results.
We have accepted your call with our tongues, our hearts and our hands, because we
believe in what you have conveyed to us and we accept it with conviction that has
settled deep within our hearts. We pledge our commitment to you in all of this and we
pledge it to our Lord and your Lord. The hand of Allah is above ours (witnessing the
pledge). We shall spill our blood to protect yours and give our lives for yours. We shall
protect you as we protect ourselves, our children and our wives. If we fulfill this pledge, it
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will be for Allah. Should we betray this pledge, it will be betraying Allah to the cost of
making us the most wretched people. O Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon
him, all that we have told you is the absolute truth and we seek the assistance of Allah
(to help us fulfill the pledge).” As’ad then turned to Abbas saying, “As for you who have
used your words to be a barrier between the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be
upon him, Allah knows best whom you love the most. However, we have severed
ourselves from people near and far as well as from blood relatives. We bear witness that
he is indeed the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, whom Allah has
sent. There is no doubt that he is not a liar and what he has brought does not in the
slightest resemble the words of a human. As for your statement that you cannot be
placated with us until we make you a promise, we will certainly not refuse such a request
made out of concern for the Messenger of Allah, praise and peace be upon him. You
may therefore take from us whatever promise you wish.” Then turning to the Messenger
of Allah, praise and peace be upon him, again, As’ad son of Zurarah said, “O Messenger
of Allah, take any promise you wish from us and make any condition that your Lord
would wish us to make.” (More details of the pledge of the allegiance made by the tribes
of Aws and Khazrah, will, inshaAllah be mentioned in the chapter concerning the
assistance that the Ansar rendered to Islam.)
May Allah be pleased with all the Companions.
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Sahaba 12-aws-and-khazraj

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Sahaba 12-aws-and-khazraj