اَعُوْذُ بِاللهِ مِنَّ الشِّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيْمِ۞
بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَانِ الرَّحِيْمَ۞
اَلْحَمْدُ لله ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلى سَيِّدِنَا محمد وَعَلَى اَلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَسَلِّمْ تَسْلِيْمًا كَثِيْرا
Session four;
The situation in Arabia and the world, was very desperate.
And for more information in that regard, you could refer to an excellent book,
written by Shaikh Abul Hassan Nadawi(شيخ ابو الحسن ندوي) called
مَاذَا خَسَرْ العَالَمْ بِانْحِطَاطُ الْمُسْلِمِيْنَ
What has the world lost by the downfall of the Muslims.?
He has a whole chapter in his book talking about the situation in the world, at the time of Rasool Allah ﷺ.
Over here we just have situation in Arabia.
But over there he talks about the situation in the Persian Empire, China, India, Roman Empire, all around the world.
And it was in a very desperate state, it needed the light of Prophet-hood.
It wasn't entirely evil,
people around the world, still retained some good qualities.
And Al-Bootie(البوطي) he talks about
some of the good qualities that the non believers of the Arabs had, in the time of Muhammadﷺ.
And he mentions a few examples like generosity and hospitality,
fulfilling of a pledge, pride and denial of shame and injustice,
firm will and determination,
perseverance and deliberateness,
pure and simple life.
So, these are some aspects that were taken advantage of, by Islam.
You see; the Sahabahرضي الله عنهم, because they held these qualities; they were successful in spreading the religion.
Their generosity and hospitality made them welcome, in the nations they would go to.
I mean, the people around the world would welcome the Sahabahرضي الله عنهم.
They weren't like a despised occupier.
The Sahabah(صحابه) were welcomed in the lands, they went to, the people saw them as a liberating army,
that would free them from slavery and the servitude that they were going through.
This held true, for example,
when it came to the people of Egypt and the people of Syria, who were ruled by the Romans.
They didn't see the army that is coming in, as displacing another occupying army.
No, they saw them as people, who are liberating them.
And then there was something among the Sahabahرضي الله عنهم,
they didn't care for power, and authority.
In many places they would go, they would train among the local people; leadership,
and then they would hand it over to them.
The Sahabah(صحابہ) were out to call people to Islam, not to rip their resources,
like we had in the colonial era of Europe,
and the imperial powers of Europe, France, Britain, Italy, Holland.
I mean, they went all over the world, these European powers went all over the world,
taking advantage of the people and stripping them of their wealth.
That wasn't the case with the armies of Sahabahرضي الله عنهم.
Their fulfillment of pledges,
their firmness and determination.
They were strong, you could count on them,
they were powerful, when they gave a word, they would stick to it.
So, these were qualities that were very important for Da'wah(دعوة).
And that's why Allahسبحانه وتعالى chose that particular area to host the last message.
I mean, it wasn't a haphazard thing.
That Allahسبحانه وتعالى chose Makkah, to be the birthplace of Rasool Allah ﷺ.
The people in that area at that time had qualities, which made them the fittest, to carry the message,
and they pledged their lives for it, and they gave their lives, they sacrificed everything for Islam.
Anyway, we talked last time about the story of the elephant, Al-Fiel(ألفيل).
Rasool Allah ﷺ was born in Aam-El-Fiel(عام الفيل).
He was born in the year in which Allahسبحانه وتعالى destroyed the army of Abraha(أبراهة).
There are many stories mentioned referring to the birth of Rasool Allah ﷺ miracles that happened.
And you could go into other books to study these stories.
We're not going to go through them for the simple reason that
I'm trying to stick to a certain standard of narration,
and these stories are usually weak.
Rasool Allah ﷺ when his mother, Aamna(آمنه) was pregnant,
Abdullah(عبدالله) his father was on a journey to Ash-Sham(الشام).
But he ended up dying close to Madina and he was buried there.
So, he died before the birth of Muhammadﷺ.
Rasool Allah ﷺ was born
and his mother saw a light that is coming out of her,
and this light is reaching towards Ash-sham(الشام).
And that was interpreted as the light of the message of Muhammadﷺ reaching to the world.
Rasool Allah ﷺ says about his lineage.
There's a few Ahadith(احاديث) that we'll state, first of all Allahسبحانه وتعالى says;
اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ حَيْثُ يَجْعَلُ رِسَالَتَهُ ۗ
Allah knows best where to place His Prophet Hood.
So, Allahسبحانه وتعالى chose the best to be His Messenger, Muhammadﷺ
Now, Imam Ahmad(امام احمد) narrates a Hadith(حديث),
that people were talking different things about Muhammadﷺ,
for example they said that Muhammadﷺ was like a green tree grown in a desert.
What they were trying to say, is that Muhammadﷺ was the only good person among his clan.
So, Ibn Abbas(إبن عباس) says certain things the people were saying reached the Messenger of Allah.
So, he mounted the pulpit and asked: "Who am I.?
They replied and said;
You are the Messenger of Allah.
He replied; I am Muhammad Bin AbdAllah Bin Abdul Muttalib(محمد بن عبدالله بن عبدالمطلب), which means son,
I am Muhammad(محمد), son of Abdallah(عبد الله), son of Abdul Muttalib(عبدالمطلب),
Allah divides the creation and made me part of His best creatures.
He made them all into two groups, placing me in the better of them,
He created the tribes and place me in the best,
sub divided them into clans and placed me in the best one,
I am the best of you both in clan and in spirit.
Rasool Allah ﷺ is saying that I am not a good person among a group of evil people.
He said: I am the best but I'm also from among the best.
So, my clan and my tribe are the most noble.
Rasool Allah ﷺ also says;
"Verily Allah granted eminence to Kanana(كنانه) from amongst the descendants of Ismail(إسماعيل),
and he granted eminence to the Quraish(قريش) from among Kanana(كنانه),
and he granted eminence to the Banni Hashim(بني هاشم) among Quraish(قريش),
and he granted me eminence from the tribe of Bannu Hashim( بنو هاشم)."
So Rasool Allah ﷺ was the greatest from among Bannu Hashim(بنو هاشم),
and Bannu Hashim(بنو هاشم) was the most noble among Quraish(قُرَيْشْ),
and Quraish(قُرَيْشْ) was the most noble among Kinanaa(كنانه),
and Kinanaa(كنانه) was the most noble of the descendants of Ismail(اِسْماعِيْل).
Now, Rasool Allah ﷺ says in another Hadith(حديث),
I was the product of true marriage, not fornication from Adam(آدم),
right on up to when my father and my mother had me,
I was not at all tainted by the fornication of Jahilliyah(جاهليه).
In the time Jahilliyah(جاهليه), because of the corruption
and lewdness that occurs, when people are far away from the true message,
their hearts become perverted.
And a lot of immoral acts occur among the people.
Rasool Allah ﷺ is saying; Even though part of my ancestry lived in those eras, in those times,
but I was a product of marriage all the way up to Adam(آدم).
So, there isn't any, of my ancestors, who had a relationship of Zina(زنا),
it is all through marriage, all the way to Adam عليه السلام,
and that is something that Allah has granted to Muhammadﷺ.
It was all through true marriage.
I hope the meaning of this is clear that,
the lineage of Rasool Allah ﷺ from him all the way up to Adam عليه السلام, was a product of marriage.
The famous names of Muhammadﷺ that we know are Muhammad(محمد) and Ahmad(احمد)
but he has some additional names,
and we'll talk about the meanings of these names.
The name that was given to him by his parents was Muhammadﷺ,
and who was the one, who named him Muhammad(محمد).?
Who was it.?
His grandfather, Abdul Muttalib(عبد المطلب) is the one, who named him Muhammadﷺ.
Now the name Muhammad(محمد) means to be eternally praised.
For he, ﷺ obliges praise from people for his characteristics, his sayings, his actions,
and he is the embodiment of praise
and he is therefore Muhammad(محمد).
So, Muhammad(محمد) means a person, who draws praise.
Muhammadﷺ, as we mentioned earlier, is praised eternally.
Allahسبحانه وتعالى has fulfilled the meaning of his name.
There is no human being that ever lived in history, who was praised like Muhammadﷺ.
He is praised day and night.
AHMAD(احمد),
the name Ahmad(احمد) comes from the same root,
see, Muhammad(محمد) and Ahmad(احمد) come from the root Hamd(حمد),
and what does Hamd(حمد) mean, praise.
When you say Al-Hamdolillah(ألحمداالله),
Praise be to Allah.
So, both the name Muhammad(محمد) and Ahmad(احمد) are derived from the same root.
Muhammad(محمد) means a person who draws praise, so he is praised.
Ahmad(احمد) means that he praises Allah.
So, Rasool Allah ﷺ is the most among us in praising Allahسبحانه وتعالى.
So, there is no person that ever lived, who praises Allahعَزّوجَلّ like Muhammadﷺ.
So, here you have two meanings, Muhammad(محمد) means he is the most praised.
Ahmad(احمد), he praises Allah, the Most.
These are the two famous names of Muhammadﷺ.
But he has also told us, some of his other names and these are from Ahadith(احاديث).
One of his other names is Al-Haashir(ألحاشر).
Al-Haashir(ألحاشر) means the gatherer to whom humanity will be resurrected in his wake.
The Prophet ﷺ is the first to be resurrected among the creation,
then mankind will be resurrected following him.
So, the first person to be resurrected will be Muhammadﷺ,
and then people will come after that.
So, he is the first on the Day of Judgment.
Al-Muqaffie(ألْمُقَفِّيْ), the successor,
for he ﷺ is the last of the Prophets and Messengers and there shall be none succeeding him.
So, Muhammadﷺ is the last, Al-Muqaffie(ألْمُقَفِّيْ), is the last.
Al-Mahee(اَلْمَاحِيْ), the eraser that erases and eradicates Kuffr(كفر).
There is no Prophet that will succeed in eliminating Kuffr(كفر) entirely, except Muhammadﷺ.
Now, that mission has not been fulfilled yet
because his Ummah(امة) is still carrying on that mission,
but the eventual victory of Islam, which will be the combination of human history,
will be a moment of time when the whole world will be Muslim.
And that will be carried on by the Ummah(امة) of Muhammadﷺ under the leadership of Eesa عليه السلام
Jesus May peace be upon him.
So, Muhammadﷺ is the one, who will be successful in eradicating, erasing Kuffr(كفر)
from the face of the earth.
So, he's called Al-Maahi(ألماحي) he will erase and eradicate Kuffr(كفر),
one of his other names is Nabi-Ul-Malhamah(نبي الملحمه),
the Prophet of the fierce battle.
Now, Malhamah(ملحمه) is a fierce battle and it's also a series of battles.
Rasool Allah ﷺ was named the Prophet of Al-Malhamah(الملحمه), the Prophet of the fierce battles.
One can give different interpretation to that, one meaning is that
his Ummah(امة) are the greatest in terms of Jihad(جهاد).
There is no Ummah(امة), that has fought Jihad(جهاد), like the Ummah(امة) of Muhammadﷺ.
That's one meaning.
Another meaning that could be drawn from this name of Rasool Allah ﷺ,
that the future of humanity after Muhammadﷺ will be that a very fierce battles.
And we have seen examples of that in World War One and World War Two.
History is divided into stages.
We're now living in the state of Muhammadﷺ, which extends until the Day of Judgment.
So, events that are happening now, even though they might not be done by Muslims,
but we are still living in the era of Muhammadﷺ.
And everyone living on the face of the earth is part of the Ummah(امة) of Muhammadﷺ,
in the sense that he is their Prophet.
Now whether they accept it or not is a different question.
But they are part of his Ummah(امة)
and they will come on the day of Judgment and they will be asked about who.?
They won't be asked Eesa(عيسى), they won't be asked about Musa(موسى)
they will be asked about Muhammadﷺ, did you follow him or not?
Rasool Allah ﷺ was nursed initially by his mother,
and Umm Ayman(أم أيمن) whose name is Barakah(بركة).
And Umm Ayman(ام ايمن) is an Abyssinian, woman who lived in Makkah.
She later on became Muslim, and Rasool Allah ﷺ and married her to his emancipated slave,
Zaid Bin Harissa(زيد بن حارثه).
Zaid Bin Harissa(زيد بن حارثه) was a slave, Rasool Allah ﷺ freed him,
and he married him to Umm Ayman(ام ايمن).
So, she also nursed him.
It was a tradition among the urban Arabs, to send their children, to grow up in the desert.
They used to believe that the desert is more pure
and is a cleaner environment and is healthier for them, to grow in.
They also believe that this will strengthen their character
because of the harshness, it will make them stronger people.
So, they would send their children out of the cities to live in the desert.
And that happened with Rasool Allah ﷺ, he was brought up in the land of Bannu Sa'ad(بنو سعد),
Halima Sadia(حليمه سعديه) narrates to us this story.
She says that she came with her friends to Makkah,
so that they could take with them children to nurse.
And for them, this was something that they were paid for.
So, you would have these Bedouin women come into Makkah
and they will try to adopt or nurse some children.
Halima Sadia(حليمه سعديه) came into Makkah.
And she said that, that particular year was the year of famine, so they were very poor.
Now, she and her friends they went around the houses of Makkah,
searching for children, who need to be nursed.
She said that Muhammadﷺ was presented to each and every one of them
and they all declined to accept him.
They all refused to accept Muhammadﷺ.
Why.?
Because he was an orphan.
They were saying what good is an orphan, who will pay us.?
If his father is dead.
So, they wouldn't agree on a certain amount of money.
What they will do is they would nurse the child
and then they will be given some financial compensation as a gift.
Since Muhammadﷺ was an orphan,
no one accepted him because he doesn't have a father to pay for him.
And they said his mother wouldn't really be able to pay us much,
so they all declined to accept Muhammadﷺ.
Halima(حليمه) says at the end of the day,
all of my friends were going back to their camps with children except myself,
I found no one to take with me.
So, at night, I told my husband,
I'm going to go next day in the morning and accept
that child called Muhammad(محمد), since we have no one else,
I'm not going to go back home empty handed.
She said my husband agreed.
So, I want next day in the morning and I went to Muhammad(محمد)'s mother,
Aamna Bint Wahb(آمنه بنت وهب)
and I said that I accept to take your child.
Halima(حليمه) says that the night before we couldn't get any sleep
because our camel was not providing any milk.
And because of the famine and the hunger,
I wasn't able to provide my own child with milk.
So, he would cry throughout the night and keep us awake.
That was their situation, very poor.
Halima(حليمه) says; that as soon as I picked up Muhammadﷺ and took him back to my camp.
My breast immediately welcomed him and provided him with all the milk that he needed,
until he was satisfied and the milk was enough for my son.
And that was the first night that we were able to get a full night of sleep
because my son wasn't able to sleep for quite a few nights.
So, immediately the Barakah(بركة) of Muhammadﷺ was apparent.
She said, and then my husband went out to milk the camel
and it was providing so much milk
that my husband came back and said: O Halima(حليمه),
you have brought us a blessed soul, there's something going on.
All of this blessing is showering us since you brought this young child in our house.
So, now they're still camping in Makkah, and they're ready now to go back, to the desert.
Halima(حليمه) said that when we were coming to Makkah
I was riding a donkey that was so old and weak,
it was slowing down the whole group,
and it was annoying everybody else.
She said, that this donkey was old and weak.
You know, sometimes you'd have a donkey rather than going straight, it would go sideways, very tired and disoriented.
She said when we were going back my donkey was the fastest among the group.
She said, my friends were asking me.?
Is this the same animal you brought with you?
When we came to Makkah? She said: Yes.
They said by Allah, something is going on.
Now, they went back to their land.
Halima(حليمه) said;
Me and my husband would send out our goats to graze,
they would come back full,
and we would milk them whenever we want.
While everybody else in our tribe, their animals would be hungry without any milk.
Now people are starting to complain to the shepherds telling them,
why don't you go and graze the animals the same place, where Halima(حليمه) is grazing hers.
She said; So they would take their animals after us,
following us to the same place,
yet ours would come back full and their's would comeback empty.
And she said the child was growing up, and we were seeing the blessings of Allah on all of us, because of him.
She says, there's a statement here.
And God went on blessing us this way, and we recognized it,
then he reached two years of age,
he was already growing up a very fine boy.
Not like the other children.
I swear that by the age of two, he was a sturdy boy.
So, we took him to his mother,
when he was two years old.
Now it's time for them to return the child.
That's it.
And Subhaan Allah(سبحان الله),
it seems that the Arabs of Makkah learned that the city is not a very healthy environment
especially with Makkah.
Because it receives a lot of visitors from all over Arabia,
you know, they could bring with them different diseases and germs into town.
But the desert is very pure.
The desert is hot and dry
and that makes it an unsuitable environment for the growth of bacteria.
And it would be a very healthy place to be.
So, now at the age of two, it was time for them to return Muhammadﷺ to his mother.
They went to Makkah, they told Aamna(آمنه);
we want to keep, Muhammad(محمد) with us.
You know, it's not good for him to be in Makkah, and it might be dangerous.
They were bringing up all of these excuses.
They wanted to keep Muhammadﷺ
and they loved him so much, they knew that he's blessed.
They wanted to keep him and they kept on trying, and trying, and trying, until Aamna(آمنه) agreed.
Subhaan(سبحان الله) that was the blessing of Allah following Muhammadﷺ.
She eventually agreed.
So, they took him back with them.
One day Muhammadﷺ was playing with his foster brother.
So, his foster brother came in rushing and said;
my brother from Quraish(قُرَيْشْ).
They said, What happened to him?
He said, Two men dressed in white, came down
and knocked him to the ground,
and then they opened up his abdomen.
So, Halima(حليمه) said, Me and his father went rushing,
and we came to see Muhammadﷺ,
his color was pale, and we asked him what happened?
He said: Two men came and they opened my chest.
And they took out something from it.
Halima(حليمه), she loves Muhammad(محمد) so much.
And she didn't want anything to harm him.
Plus, she didn't want anything bad to happen to him when he is with her.
So, she rushed back to Makkah and went to Aamna(آمنه) and said;
Here is Muhammad(محمد) you can now have him,
we have fulfilled our responsibility.
Aamna(آمنه) said: How come you're bringing him back when you are so interested in keeping him?
They said, nothing.
She insisted.
She said, Tell me what happened?
You were so insistent on keeping him
and now you want to bring him back,
What happened?
Halima(حليمه) said; she kept on questioning us, until we eventually told her.
Aamna(آمنه) responded and said;
Are you afraid for him, that Satan might hurt him?
By Allah that will not happen.!
When I was pregnant with him, it was the lightest pregnancy
and when I delivered him, his birth was unlike any other child,
and when he came out, I have seen light that was reaching to Ash-Sham(الشام).
So, the protection of Allah is with him,
and I'm sure that he will have a great future.
So, now Muhammadﷺ was back with his mother.
His mother passed away when he was at the age of six.
So, now he lost his father and mother.
He was adopted by his grandfather Abdul Muttalib(عبد المطلب),
who raised him up
and Abdul Muttalib(عبدالمطلب) passed away when Muhammadﷺ was at the age of eight.
And now, Muhammadﷺ was taken care of, by his uncle Abu Talib(ابو طالب),
who protected him, and helped him, and supported him, for the next 40 years, in the life of Muhammadﷺ.
This is the early years of صلوات الله وسلام عليه.
We'll talk about a few events here and there, that happened before Prophet hood.
We're not going to spend much time on the Pre Prophet hood era,
but we'll talk about the important events that happened.
Rasool Allah ﷺ was protected by Allah, he would not commit sins,
which were usual and normal amongst his people.
Allahسبحانه وتعالى was keeping him away from these sins.
Rasool Allah ﷺ narrates, an example of this.
He says, that I was a shepherd,
and one day, I told my friend, who was also a shepherd with me,
I told him tonight I want to go in, to Makkah to attend the parties, my peers attend.
Rasool Allah ﷺ was a young man at that time
and all of his friends would attend parties, except he,
he was the only one, who would not join them in these parties.
So, Rasool Allah ﷺ said; One day I wanted to go and see, what they were doing.?
So, I told my friend to take care of my flock, until I come back.
He agreed.
Rasool Allah ﷺ said; I went into Makkah and I arrived at the place where they were having this party.
And Rasool Allah ﷺ said: As soon as I was hearing the music,
Allahسبحانه وتعالى struck my ears, so I fell down asleep.
By the time I woke up, the party was over.
He said: The next day, I decided to attend another party.
Rasool Allah ﷺ said: I went into Makkah.
Same arrangement with my friend,
I went into Makkah,
and as soon as I reached the place and
I was hearing the music, Allahسبحانه وتعالى struck my ears again,
I fell down asleep
and I woke up after the party is over,
and I realized that this is a sign to me, from Allah.
Allahسبحانه وتعالى is giving me a sign.
We have another example that was mentioned by Zaid Ibn Harissa(زيد بن حارثه).
Zaid Ibn Harissa(زيد بن حارثه), who was the servant of Rasool Allah ﷺ.
Zaid(زيد) he narrates, he says there was a brass idol called Isaaf(اساف) and Naila(نائله),
which the polytheists, would touch as they performed Tawaf(طواف).
The Messenger of Allah said: Don't touch it.
So, you had Isaaf(اساف) and Naila(نائله)
and the people of Quraish(قُرَيْشْ), when they would make Hajj(حج) or Umrah(عمره),
they would touch these two idols,
it was part of their worship.
Rasool Allah ﷺ told Zaid(زيد): "Don't touch them."
Now, how did Rasool Allah ﷺ know that he wasn't supposed to touch the idols.
It was Hidaya(هداية) coming from Allahسبحانه وتعالى.
So, as we went around again, I told myself
I would touch it to see what would happen.?
When I did so the Messenger of Allah asked me:
were you not forbidden to do that.?
Zaid(زيد) then stated that, the Messenger of Allah never saluted an idol,
right up to, when Allah The Almighty honored him and He gave him, the revelation.
Rasool Allah ﷺ never made Sujood(سجود) to an idol.
Never touched the idols in the sense of worship.
And Rasool Allah ﷺ had a natural dislike to idol worshiping.
And he even, applied those rules on his family,
Zaid Ibn Harissa(زيد بن حارثه), who was his servant,
Rasool Allah ﷺ told him: Don't involve in touching these idols.
And that's why, Ali Ibn Abi Talib(علي ابن ابي طالب),
he never worshipped an idol.
Why.?
Because he was raised up in the house of who.?
In the house of Rasool Allah ﷺ.
When Abu Talib(ابو طالب) was poor,
Rasool Allah ﷺ offered to take care of his son, Ali Ibn Abi Talib(علي ابن ابي طالب).
So, Ali Ibn Abi Talib(علي ابن ابي طالب) was raised up by Rasool Allah ﷺ
and Ali Ibn Abi Talib(علي ابن ابي طالب) therefore never made Sujood(سجود) to an idol.
He never worshipped idols because he was brought up in the house of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Allahسبحانه وتعالى was guiding him towards some of the Ibadaat(عبادات) that nobody else knew about.
Among the people of Quraish(قُرَيْشْ) during Hajj(حج),
they would be the only people not to participate in Arafah(عرفه).
So, you have different rituals of Hajj(حج),
you have Tawaf(طواف) around Al-Ka'aba(اَلْكَعْبَه),
you have Sa'ee(سعي) between As-Saffah Wal Marwa(ألصفاء ولمروة),
you have standing in Arafah(عرفه),
you have camping and Mina(مناء).
The people of Quraish(قُرَيْشْ) would participate in all of these rituals,
with the exception of Arafah(عرفه).
Why.?
Because Arafah(عرفه) is considered out of Al-Haram(ألحرم).
Arafah(العرفه) is outside the boundaries of the sacred place, Al-Haram(ألحرم).
Arafah(عرفه) is outside.
So, all of the Arabs would go to Arafah(عرفه) in Hajj(حج),
with the exception of the people of Quraish(قُرَيْشْ).
They would say, we are the dwellers of Al-Haram(الحرم),
how can we go outside of Al-Haram(ألحرم).
That was their logic.
If we are part of Al-Haram(ألحرم), we are the people of Makkah
how can we get out of the boundaries of Makkah.?
So, they would stop at the borders, with Arafah(عرفه).
Al-Mut'am Bin Jubair(المطعم بن جُبَيْر), he lost his camel,
and he went to look for it,
and he ended up searching for his camel in Arafah(عرفه).
To his amazement, who does he find there.?
Muhammadﷺ.
Al-Jubair(الجُبَيْر) said:
Isn't he from among the people of Quraish(قُرَيْشْ),
what is he doing in Arafah(عرفه).?
But Allahسبحانه وتعالى was guiding Muhammadﷺ by Fitrah(فطرة),
to go to Arafah(عرفه) during the time of Hajj(حج).
The first profession, for Rasool Allah ﷺ was shepherding.
That's the first thing, he did.
And in Bukhari(بخاريْ), Rasool Allah ﷺ says,
"Allah has not sent a Prophet that was not a shepherd.
His companions, then asked and you?
He said, Yes, I used to herd sheep, with compensation from the people of Makkah."
Every prophet has been a shepherd.
It's striking that Allahسبحانه وتعالى has trained all of His Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء)
by going through this line of work, being a shepherd.
What are the lessons that we can learn from Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) being shepherds.?
There are lessons to be learned from them, being shepherds,
and there are lessons to be learned from them being shepherds of specifically sheep.
Because that's what the Hadith(حديث) states.
It didn't just make an unqualified statement that they were shepherds.
It states that they were shepherds of sheep.
Actually, the Hadith(حديث) says: Ra'al Ghanam(رَاعَ الْغَنَمْ)
And Ghanam(غنم) could mean either sheep or goats,
the same word in Arabic, refers to both.
The most important lesson to learn from that,
we're talking about lessons that Ambiyah(أنبياء) learned from being Shepherds,
the most important lesson that they learn,
the most important training that they get,
from being shepherds is responsibility.
And Rasool Allah ﷺ says in the Hadith(حديث)
كُلُّكُمْ رَاعٍ وَكُلُّكُمْ مَسْؤوْلٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ،
You are all shepherds, and you are all responsible for your herd.
And then he said that the Imam(اِمَام) is responsible for his people,
Imam(اِمَام), meaning the leader of the Muslims,
the man is responsible for his household, the woman is responsible, everyone is responsible.
So, the first lesson to learn from being a shepherd is responsibility.
You know, a Shepherd, usually he's working for somebody else, who owns the flock.
So, they're hired by someone else.
So, they have to report to a higher authority, they have to report to someone else.
Now, a shepherd cannot go back to the owner and say;
Well, I'm sorry, I lost one sheep, because that sheep happened to be stupid.
It doesn't matter what the sheep do, you are responsible.
Anything that happens to this flock.
Even if the sheep was wrong, you are responsible for it.
you can't go back and say, well, the sheep was wrong.
It's not my fault.
No, it's your fault.
So, they learn to be responsible for herd,
even if the herd is not responsible for itself.
They still feel that they are going to be held accountable for the flock,
regardless of whether the flock is intelligent or not.
Whether they're united or not, whether they obey or not,
I am accountable for that.
So, it's a very important lesson for the leader.
You are responsible for your herd,
and the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) of Allah, one day are going to be accountable to Allahسبحانه وتعالى for their people.
So, that's the first lesson they learned being responsible.
Second lesson, it teaches them patience.
Taking out sheep to graze,
they take their time,
they're slow,
and you have to wait,
you have to be patient,
they might end up fighting with each other,
they might end up playing with each other,
you have to wait,
you have to be patient.
And you can't really tell them, come on, guys finish up,
we have to leave, you can't,
they're going to take their time,
and you have to sit there waiting.
You see, shepherd, sometimes when their sheep are grazing, they would just sit on a rock
and wait until the sheep have their fill.
So, it teaches patience.
And you're doing this day in, and day out on a daily basis.
You leave in the morning, you come back at sunset.
And you have to be patient with these animals,
you have to bear with them.
Even if you're not communicating well with them,
and if they're not communicating well with you.
You still have to be patient and bear with him.
So the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) learned to be very, very patient with their people.
I mean, look at what Musaعليه السّلام went through with Banni Israel(بني إسرائيل)
unbearable.
But Musa(موسى) had a training in shepherding longer than maybe any other Prophet.
He was a shepherd for 10 years.
When he left Egypt, and he got married to the daughter of Shoaib(شعيب),
what did the Father, What does his father in law tell him.?
You work for me eight years, or 10.
So, the contract was eight years.
And then he told him that if you want to add two years to that,
it's a favor that you would do me.
Now the Ayah(آية) in Qur'an does not state whether
Musa(موسى) worked for eight or 10.
Rasool Allah ﷺ wanted to know.
So, he asked Jibreel(جِبْرِيْل), he said, How long did Musa(موسى) work.?
Jibreel(جِبْرِيْل) told him:
اَتَمُّ الْاَجَلَيْنِ وَ اَكْمَلَهَا
He worked the most complete and perfect term.
In other words, 10 years.
Being a Nabi(نبي) of Allah, he is going to do the best job.
So, even though the contract stated eight years, he did 10.
Musa عليه السلام went through a lot, but he was patient.
He was patient with his people.
Noahعليه السلام nine hundred and fifty years in Da'wah(دعوة).
And he was still patient with his people.
He tried every different way,
دَعَوْتُ قَوْمِي لَيْلًا وَنَهَارًاَ۝ ثُمَّ إِنِّي دَعَوْتُهُمْ جِهَارًاَ۝
I tried publicly and privately.
I tried at night and day time,
I tried every way and they were rejecting my message.
Imagine doing the same thing,
meeting the same people, who are turning you down for 950 years.
The third lesson protection,
the shepherd protects the flock.
Now, there are various dangers seen or unseen.
You have wolves, you have other beasts and then you have diseases.
All of this, the shepherd needs to be on top of it all
and needs to consistently make sure that no dangers are affecting the flock.
And the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) of Allah are very protective of their people.
They try to protect them from physical and psychological dangers.
In Madina, at night, suddenly a commotion was heard.
So, some of those Sahabah immediately picked up their weapons and on their horses,
and racing towards the source of the sound,
they went there and to their amazement, they found Rasool Allah ﷺ already on his way back, telling them:
لَنْ تُرَآ ءُ
He told them everything is fine.
So, even though these Sahabah(صحابہ) were so fast and swift in getting there,
Rasool Allah ﷺ was already there before them.
And he checked it out, make sure it is fine and came back.
Rasool Allah ﷺ would warn them from Shaytaan( شَيْطَانْ), would warn them from every,
Rasool Allah ﷺ has not left any danger that could afflict us without warning us.
Everything even talked about events in the future,
Ad-Dajjal(الدجال).
He told the Sahabah(صحابه),
he said: I have warned you about Ad-Dajjal(الدجال),
like no other prophet has warned his people
meaning, I have given you more details than anybody else.
If he comes out while I'm among you,
I will take care of that.
If he comes out after I pass away,
then everyone is responsible for their own protection.
So, that's another lesson the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) learned from being shepherds.
A fourth lesson;
These animals are closer to Earth, and their sight is very limited.
Sheep can only see so far, any small obstacle would block their view.
But the human being standing up tall, has a longer view.
And from that vantage point can see danger while it's approaching, the sheep cannot.
Because the shepherd is standing up and staring in every direction.
The first to notice danger would be the shepherd.
And the shepherd therefore would give an advance warning to the flock.
So, you'd have this flock of sheep,
grazing around happily and they don't know that there's some danger a few feet away.
But because of their shortsightedness, they cannot see it, while the shepherd's can.
And that is the case with the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء),
they sense and they detect the danger before it approaches us.
And they have the clearest vision,
and they have the longest view,
and they have a vantage point that none of us has,
and they know what is good for us.
Rasool Allah ﷺ says the analogy of me and you is like, someone sitting next to a fire, at night.
When you have a fire at night, what happens?
it would attract insects.
If you have a lamp outside of your house.
And it's night time, you'd have all these moths flying around it,
they're attracted by any source of light.
Now, if they see fire, they think it is light, not knowing that it will burn them.
So, all of these moths and flying insects are attracted to the fire thinking it's light,
and they get there and they burned,
you just hear a sound, what you're hearing is really an insect exploding, it's just burning alive.
Rasool Allah ﷺ says; That's the analogy of me and you.
I'm like somebody standing next to this fire
and you are attracted to it and you're jumping in it,
while I'm grabbing you by your clothes, dragging you away,
and you are forcing yourselves into it.
وَاَنَا اَخِذٌ بِحَجَاكُمْ وَاَنْتُمْ تَقْهَمُوْنَ فِيْ النَّارْ
I'm holding you, dragging you by your clothes,
and you are releasing yourself from me jumping into the fire.
He knows that it's the fire, we don't,
he sees the danger, we don't.
Rasool Allah ﷺ was inviting the people to Jannah(جنة).
And they are forcing themselves to the path of hellfire.
So, the Ra'ee(راعي), the shepherd sees the danger and realizes it.
And he's warning giving very strong warnings to the flock.
I mean, if you have in front of you,
if you see a blind man, walking,
and in front of this man is a deep trench,
and this man is blind, he cannot see.
So, within a few steps, he's gonna fall in that trench and it might kill himself.
In that situation, what would your response would be,
you would jump up and scream and give that man an immediate warning.
Be careful.!
You're not going to sit there and think about it,
and try to think about some very polite and pleasant words that you could deliver to this man,
you gonna scream to the top of your voice and tell him, Be careful!.
And that's what the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) were doing.
They were giving a very plain straightforward warning,
not because they lacking sensitivity,
and they are tempting to hurt the feelings of others.
No, because they want to save the other people
because they really cared about them.
And the Ra'ee(راعي) might hit some of the animals,
not because he wants to hurt them.
But because he wants to save them.
So, whenever we see a Nabi(نبي) of Allah standing up and giving,
what seems to be a very direct and staunch warning, it is because they care about their people.
When Rasool Allah ﷺ stood on the Mimbar(ممبر) and said
اَنْزَرتُكُمُ النَّارْ
اَنْزَرتُكُمُ النَّارْ،
It is reported that Rasool Allah ﷺ stood on the pulpit in the Masjid(مسجد),
and told the people I am warning you Hellfire
and his voice was going up and up and up.
The narrator of the Hadith(حديث) said,
that the people in the marketplace could hear Rasool Allah ﷺ in the Masjid(مسجد).
And he was repeating the same thing again, and again,
I'm warning you hellfire.
So, they have a long view.
Number five, simplicity.
A shepherd is living a very simple life.
You cannot have all of the accessories of life with you in the desert.
You cannot take your Mercedes Benz car,
and your refrigerator with all of the different fruits and types of food,
and you haven't couch with you in the desert.
And you haven't a TV and a remote control,
you can't have that in the desert.
In the desert all, what you can carry with you is a few items, and that's it.
You have to give up all of the things you have.
Even if you're a wealthy person,
you can't have these things with you out there, when you're shepherding.
You can't have it,
you going out in the desert, walking with these animals you have to be light.
So, it teaches them to lead a simple life,
a shepherd is eating very simple food,
he's having very simple accommodations.
It teaches them simplicity, they become very simple.
And it teaches them to get accustomed to different environments.
It could be raining, you still have to feed the animals,
it could be cold, hot, windy, all different climates,
a shepherd has to deal with that.
And the shepherd is the last to take cover,
you're responsible for these animals, you have to take them in, you have to protect them.
So, it teaches them to get accustomed to different ways of life.
So, Rasool Allah ﷺ would travel from one place to another, he would go out in battles
and he was able to get accustomed to all of this because of his experience as a shepherd.
Six;
Closeness to the creation of Allah.
It pulls you out of the artificial world,
you are out with the creation of Allah, close to nature.
Dear brothers and sisters,
the life that we are leading
could leave some harmful scars on our hearts and on our way of thinking.
Living in this concrete world, where everything is artificial, is against the natural disposition of our creation.
We were created from this earth,
and we are close to nature, we are part of it.
And keeping us away from that, in this artificial world
is keeping us away from contemplating in the creation of Allah.
Look at how many references are made in Qur'an to the creation of Allah,
the sun,
the moon,
stars,
heavens,
mountains,
rivers,
oceans,
plants.
All of this is mentioned in Qur'an, why is Allah talking about all these things?
to draw our attention to His creation because
His creation is a mirror of His abilities.
The creation of Allah is a mirror of the attributes of Allah.
If you want to learn about the greatness of Allah,
look at His creation.
If you want to learn about the wisdom of Allah, look at His creation.
If you want to learn about the knowledge of Allah,
look at His creation.
Basically, if you want to learn about all of the names of Allahسبحانه وتعالى,
you'll find some reflection of them in the creation of Allah.
So, when we want to learn about Allah,
all what we have to do, is look at His creation.
That is how we can learn the Aza'mah(عَظَمى), the greatness of Allah.
A shepherd spends a lot of time, close to nature.
And that gives them a chance to contemplate,
not every Shepherd will take advantage of that.
But the opportunity is given.
And the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) of Allah took advantage of that opportunity.
Rasool Allah ﷺ would spend time thinking about the creation of Allah, wondering about it.
So, these are some lessons, there are some others
some lessons to be learned from being shepherds.
Now, what about sheep?
How come specifically sheep?
How come it didn't say they were shepherds of camels,
shepherds of cows?
How come specifically sheep.?
Now we might say that in the case of Rasool Allah ﷺ being brought up in Arabia,
it was not their custom to raise cows.
But they did raise camels.
And Rasool Allah ﷺ was never in his life a shepherd of camels,
other Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء), who lived in other areas, how come it was specifically sheep?
Well, sheep are very weak animals.
They are weaker than cows and much weaker than camels.
Therefore they need more protection.
They need more care.
And because of this weakness, they could easily fall prey.
And when Rasool Allah ﷺ wanted to warn us from Shaytan(شيطان), what did Rasool Allah ﷺ say;
he brought in his experience, and he said, stick with the Jama'ah(جماعة),
be with the group, be close to the group of the Muslims.
Because the wolf eats from the strange sheep.
So, Rasool Allah ﷺ learned as a shepherd,
that if one sheep goes astray, that will be the target of the wolf,
the wolf will not hit the flock,
the wolf will hit the one, that is alone.
And we are weak, as these sheep, when it comes to Shaytan(شيطان)
Shaytan(شيطان) can tempt us and attack us.
We talked about the weakness of sheep and how similar that is to our weakness.
But there's another important lesson to learn.
And that is the fact that we are affected by the environment, we work in.
Our work leaves permanent influence on our personality.
Shepherds of sheep are different than shepherds of camels and shepherds of cows.
Shepherds of sheep are different than cowboys.
And the Cowboys are different than shepherds of camel.
Why, because they are dealing with a different animal.
Sheep tend to be very compassionate, very merciful, and they are weak.
So, the shepherd learns to become merciful, and kind with them because they are very fragile animals.
You cannot be too harsh with sheep.
So, the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) of Allah learn how to be compassionate with their followers.
But when it comes to camels, for example,
camels tend to be very arrogant animals.
And you cannot be soft with the camel, otherwise it will take advantage of you,
with a camel you have to meet that arrogance was strength,
you meet the pride with pride.
And that makes the shepherds of camels rough
and it makes them very tough and they could be rude.
And that is something that is learned because of the environment that they're living in.
And we could talk about the qualities or the characteristics of cows
and draw their influence on their shepherds.
What you do, affects you.
Teachers tend to have a different personality than doctors,
doctors have a different personality than engineers,
engineers have different personality than skilled workers,
farmers have different personality than so and so.
Your work affects your personality.
So, after being a doctor for a few years,
you lose your ability to write, you start scribbling.
Being a teacher for a very long time
that makes a person such a fatherly figure and he is always giving advice.
And they might do this with people who are their peers,
but because they are used to dealing with children,
they start dealing with others in a similar way.
People who stay in the academic field for a very long time, tend to be very scholarly,
even when they're outside the academic world,
the way they speak the sophistication of their talk,
the words that they pick, would be different than somebody who has less education.
Mechanics, since they are always dealing with machines,
would tend to have a personality that is different than a farmer, who is always dealing with plants and as close to nature.
Actually, the influence is both ways.
Your personality will affect your profession, and your profession will affect you.
Because people with a certain interests will tend to choose
a profession that suits their personality.
But then that profession would push them further in those traits.
And they would end up developing those.
People who stay in the political work for a very long time, tend to be a more deceptive than others.
And it also depends on the political situation that you're working in.
I mean, Because that's your daily business.
That's how you have to be from morning till night,
For example, an actor,
somebody who's always acting, putting on a different face, imitating a different personality
that teaches them something,
doesn't it,
it affects their personality.
So, our work affects us.
Therefore, as a Muslim, you need to be careful on what type of work you do.
Now, this is not to say that we should not spread in different fields.
But keep in mind that you need to choose work that would suit your personality.
And also keep in mind that your work will affect you, and influence you.
Every type of work out there has something good in it,
try to take advantage of that good and try to eliminate the bad of the field.
I mean, I mentioned for example, being deceptive and lying in politics.
Now that doesn't mean that we shouldn't go into that field.
Because as Muslims we need to change that image, a politics.
With the Sahabahرضي الله عنهم, almost every Sahabi(صحابي) had that involvement.
When you look at a certain time, after Rasool Allah ﷺ passed away,
you would rarely find a Sahabi(صحابي), who did not assume office in one place or another.
Whether it was an governorship or whether it was mayor ship of a town or whether it was leading an army.
But the political environment they lived in was absolutely different than what we have today.
It was an environment of honesty, and straightforwardness
and being accountable and responsible to the people and serving them.
So, our work does affect and influence us.
Enough said about shepherds of sheep.
All right, well Ibn Hajar(إبن حجر), a side note, just a little bit about him.
Ibn Hajar(ابن حجر) was one of the classical scholars.
He wrote the most prominent commentary on Sahih Al-Bukhari(صحيح ألبخاري),
Ibn Hajar(ابن حجر) was a scholar in different fields,
Hadith(حديث), Fiqh(فقه), Aqeedah(عقيده).
his commentary on Bukhari(بخاريْ) is the most famous and the most prominent.
There are other commentaries on Bukhari(بخاريْ), but none of them gained the prominence of Fath-Al-Baari(فتح ألباري),
by Ibn Hajar Al-Askalaani(إبن حجر ألعسقلاني).
Since this Hadith(حديث) is in Bukhari(بخاريْ).
Here I have a quote from Ibn Hajar(ابن حجر) commenting on this particular Hadith(حديث).
He says:
The wisdom behind having the Prophets as shepherds before Prophet hood,
is that they may become skilled in herding a flock,
as they will be responsible for their respective nations in the future.
In herding, one attains forbearance and mercy and it imbues patience.
For when a shepherd is obliged to gather his flock,
and herd it from one area to another at once,
knowing the traits of all and all,
while protecting the flock from predators.
He has thus attained the skills necessary to lead the nation
and protect it from its enemies both within and abroad.
Thus the Prophets learned patience when leading their people
and attained an understanding of the different natures of people.
They learned to show kindness to the weak and resolve with the dominant
The reasons for which Allahسبحانه وتعالى chosen the sheep for the Prophets,
as opposed to the communal cows or camels
is that they are animals that are weak and need extra guidance and attention.
Sheep are more difficult to maintain as a flock,
because of their propensity to go astray and wander away.
This is akin to human traits within a society
and it is the Divine Wisdom of Allah to train these Prophets accordingly.
And the Prophet ﷺ mentioning of this humble trade shared by all Prophets,
attests to his humility to Allah.
Muhammad Al-Abdaah(محمد العبدة), who is a current writer,
he also comments on this and he states;
"this faith excels through the free thinkers, the courageous,
the intelligent, and those who are just.
And one cannot encompass it except by distancing themselves from lowly character.
It is therefore incumbent upon the Muslims to take on the pure
characteristics embodied in humanity's natural disposition.
This was the example that was sought by the early Khalifah(خليفه) Umar Ibn Al-Khattab(عمر ابن الخطاب),
when he pleaded with his people to toughen up
and learn how to ride a stet.
He feared for his people, the longing for this life,
and adopting reprehensible characteristics.
This does not mean that one must abandon an urban living, in order to achieve the stated objectives.
But it does mean that one should abandon those things in their life
that turn them away from the difficulties of this message.
Muhammad Al-Abdaah(محمد العبدة) is actually commenting on Rasool Allah ﷺ living as a shepherd in the desert,
and also Rasool Allah ﷺ been brought up in the desert in the early years of his life.
And then he draws in the saying of Umar Ibn Al-Khattab(عمر ابن الخطاب) when he was a Khalifah(خليفه).
He could have access to the best of this world could offer,
but he still lived a simple life.
And he was warning the Muslims telling them that you need to toughen up.
Because this message, demand sometimes,
you going through some difficult situations and you need to be prepared and ready for that.
Da'wah(دعوة) is one aspect.
A Daiyah(داعيا) cannot be sincere
and whole heartedly involved in Da'wah(دعوة),
if they cannot have patience,
and they are not willing to go into situations that might be difficult.
The next important event that happened
during the early years of Rasool Allah ﷺ, was a pact called Hilf-Al-Fudhool(حلف ألفضول).
The story behind this is there was a man who came in from Zabeed(زبيد), in Yemen.
He came to do business in Makkah.
His merchandise was taken by Al-Aas Bin Wael(ألعاص بن وائل), who promised to pay him back.
He's gonna sell it and pay him back.
Al-Aas Bin Wael(ألعاص بن وائل), after a while refused to pay this man,
he was taken advantage of the fact that he's a foreigner, he's not from Makkah.
He told them, frankly, I'm not gonna pay you.
Al-Aas(العاص) expected that this man will just walk away.
I mean, he's, he's a foreigner who will help him.
But the man didn't.
The man stood up for his right.
And he went to a public place in Makkah.
And he started calling the people of Quraish(قُرَيْشْ).
And he was telling them I was oppressed in your land.
And, are you people who are going to stand up for my rights?
Will you allow this oppression to happen in your land?
And he said a few emotional words.
So, some of the clans of Quraish(قُرَيْشْ) decided to meet together to bring about an agreement
on protecting the rights of the weak in Makkah,
we cannot allow this to happen.
And among these families of Quraish(قُرَيْشْ), was the family of Rasool Allah ﷺ,
his uncle's.
Rasool Allah ﷺ at the time was a young boy.
But he said my uncle's took me with them to attend this meeting.
The meeting was held in the house of Abdullah Bin Jad'aan(عبدالله بن جدعان).
Abdullah Bin Jad'aan(عبدالله بن جدعان), this was symbolic for them to have it in his house,
because he was a man who was very generous, very kind to others.
And he was a person, who was stand up for what is right.
So, they decided to honor him by having this meeting in his house.
So, they So they came together and they made an agreement
that we will stand together all of us, present here.
We will stand together to protect the rights of the oppressed and the weak.
This happened before Prophet hood.
It was a pact that occurred between non believers, between Mushrikeen(مشركين).
Rasool Allah ﷺ said:
I witnessed in the house of Abdullah Bin Jad'aan(عبدالله بن جدعان).
A pact made that I wouldn't have exchanged it for the choicest-heart.
And if it had been suggested after Islam,
I would have responded positively to it.
Rasool Allah ﷺ is saying that, if I'm invited to it today,
after the message of Islam, has been given to me,
I would have still responded to it, even though it was held by non believers.
The important lesson to learn from this is that
Muslims should side with what is right,
no matter what the source is, no matter where that is coming from.
Muslims should stand for human rights, should stand for the oppressed,
should stand for the needy,
no matter what their religious background is.
We should stand up for what is good.
As a Muslim, we stand up for what is right.
And Rasool Allah ﷺ was making this point
by stating that I would respond to it today if I was invited.
The man was given back what belongs to him, after that.
An incident happened later on, in the time of Al-Amwi'een(ألأمويين)
we're talking about a few decades after Rasool Allah ﷺ passed away.
It's happened between Al-Hussain Bin Ali(الحسين بن علي) the son of Ali Ibn Abi Talib(علي ابن ابي طالب)
and Al-Waleed Bin Ut'bah Bin Abu Sufiaan(ألوليد بن عتبه بن أبو سفيان), who was the governor of Madina,
because Al-Waleed(الوليد) was the governor of Madina, he was taking advantage of his position.
And he has taken away some property that belongs to the son of Ali Ibn Abi Talib(علي ابن ابي طالب), Al-Hussain(ألحسين).
Al-Hussain(الحسين) what he did is.?
He went to, Al-Waleed(الوليد) and told him you either give me back what belongs to me.
Otherwise, I'm gonna walk into the Masjid(مسجد)
and invite the people to Hil-Ful Fudhool(حلف ألفضول)
I'm gonna remind them about Hil-Ful Fudhool(حلف ألفضول).
Now, Abdullah Bin Zubair(عبدالله بن زبير) was with Al-Waleed(الوليد) at that time.
And he said: "And I too swear by Allah,
that if he does invoke it,
I draw my sword and stand there with him, until he gets his justice
or we'll all die together."
And then some other people heard about that Al-Musawwir Bin Makramah(ألمصور بن مكرمه)
and Abdur Rahman Bin Usman Bin Ubaid(عبدالرحمن بن عثمان بن عبيد)
and others and they gave similar statements.
So now, it was picking up and Al-Waleed(الوليد) realized that it could become quite dangerous.
So, he gave back Al-Hussain(الحسين), what belongs to him.
The reason why I'm bringing this in, even though it happened way after
Seerah(سيرة), the life of Rasool Allah ﷺ is,
to show that Muslims would not allow wrong to happen in front of them.
I mean, here you have people who are living under a particular leader, Al-Waleed Bin Utba(الوليد بن عتبه).
Nevertheless, they stood up and they protected their brother, who was in need,
even if they had to give up their lives.
So, Muslim should stand up for what is right.
Shaikh Muhammad Al-Ghazali(شيخ محمد الغزالي), He comments on this pact he says;
This pact shows that no matter how dark life becomes,
and oppressive dictators become
noble characteristics will still remain in certain people, who stand up for justice and Birr(بِرّ),
Birr(بِرّ) is righteousness.
Allah has made cooperation in enjoying good an obligation upon Muslims,
which He has called to, in the verse and cooperate in virtue and taqwa(تقوي)
and do not help one another in sin and transgression.
So, for a group of Muslims to enter into a treaty or a contract,
such as the aforementioned
is made permissible because it is only a reinforcement for an Islamic obligation.
However, this by definition must be dissimilar to the situation of Masjid Zarrar(مسجد الضرار).
This was a mosque created in Madina to exclude groups of Muslims.
He says, where the cooperation turns into a nationalistic or elitist strategy to exclude Muslims.
As for the Muslims, contracting with the people of other faiths,
in order to remove oppression or to face an oppressor,
this becomes permissible for them,
if there is in it, the welfare of Islam and Muslims in the present and the future.
The basis for this is essentially the Prophets ﷺ willingness to answer the call for the pact even after Islam.
صَلَّى الله عَلى سَيَّدِنَا محمد وَعَلى اَلِهِ وَ صَحْبِهِ وَسَلِّمْ تَسْلِيْمًا كَثِيْرًا