A Clear Victory
(The Treaty of Hudaybiyyah)
The futility of the
Battle of Ahzab which had been the result of joint planning
between the Jews and Quraysh was a cause of great frustration
for the two groups. The Quraysh felt that there were slim
chances of defeating the Muslims. It would not be an easy task
to recoup the resources which they had already gathered and
used by mobilising the entire Arab world and had then been
humiliated after attacking Madinah. Even if this were
possible, how could anyone have garnered the courage and will
for another action exactly the same as the previous one,
especially because there was no certainty that they would be
successful this time. This was the reason why the Quraysh were
quiet for a while after the Battle of Ahzab.
Contrary to the
Quraysh, Muslims learned their lessons from this battle and it
proved to be a blessing for them. Because of it, they were
freed from the only Jewish tribe, the Banu Qurayẓah, which
lived in the surroundings of Madinah. The hypocrisy of the
hypocrite group that had acted as the fifth column during the
battle with an aim to harm the Muslims became evident to all.
The circumstances and outcome of this battle profoundly
increased loyalty to Islam and belief in help from God among
sincere followers of the faith.
The Jews of Khyber had
not yet lost hope. They continued to hatch conspiracies
although they did not have much success.
Plan of the Prophet (sws)
for ‘Umrah
A year after the
Battle of Ahzab, the situation changed extraordinarily, to the
surprise of Muslims, Jews and Quraysh alike. The Prophet (sws)
dreamt that he had entered the Ka‘bah along with his
Companions who had shaved their heads. This act of shaving the
head related to the Ka‘bah pilgrimage is part of undertaking
the ‘umrah. The Prophet (sws), therefore, interpreted this to
mean that he would offer the ‘umrah and carry out its
requirements with his Companions. Although the Quraysh had
closed the doors of the Ka‘bah to Muslims and the nature of
their political relationships with Muslims was also not such
that the latter could think of making a journey to Makkah, yet
the Prophet (sws), considering his dream to be a sign from
God, announced to all Muslims in and around Madinah that he
planned to offer ‘umrah in the month of Dhu al-Qa‘dah and that
they should be ready to accompany him.
This decision of the
Prophet (sws) was neither emotional nor made in a hurry, in
the light of the dream. It was aimed towards obeying an
instruction from God. A prophet’s dreams are a form of
revelation, although details are somewhat vague and their
purpose becomes clear later. However, the prophet is assigned
to understand this hidden meaning and to implement it
accordingly. For example, Abraham (sws) dreamt that he was
slaughtering his son and he decided to act upon this, thinking
of it as a sign and instruction from God. But just as he was
about to do so, he was stopped. It was revealed to him that
the dream was a test for him and not an instruction for the
slaughter of his son. The real interpretation of the dream was
to devote his son to the service of the House of God. Abraham
(sws) therefore, dedicated Ishmael (sws) to the custodianship
of the Ka‘bah. In exactly the same manner, the Prophet (sws)’s
preparations to proceed to Makkah were in obedience to God’s
instructions and there was no political reason for the same.
When Orientalists pick
up their pens to write a biography of the Prophet (sws), they
will go to any length. The famous Orientalist Montgomery Watt
states on the subject of Hudaybiyyah in his book “Muhammad at
Medina” that the purpose of this journey for ‘umrah was to
show to the Arabs that Islam was not a foreign religion which
was not rooted within Arabia. It had its roots in Arabia and
Muslims were as interested in the worships of Hajj and ‘umrah
as were other Arabs. Hence, if Islam were to gain prominence,
the centrality of Makkah would not be affected. This
speculation from Watt could have been accepted had the
worships of hajj and ‘umrah or the centrality of Makkah as a
policy of Islam were derived through this journey of the
Prophet (sws). The reality is that many years before, the
Quran had already accused the Quraysh of turning the centre of
tawhiid, built by their father, Abraham (sws), into a fort of
polytheism and had mutilated the worship of God into mere
rituals. The status of the Quraysh was therefore, that of a
traitor that had usurped the resources of the House of God.
After this, during the first year of migration, the Ka‘bah had
been declared the qiblah for Muslims and thus made the centre
of the Muslim nation. Appropriate changes were also made in
the worship acts. Instructions were given to free it from the
usurpers by using armed attacks. All of these matters were
discussed in Surah Baqarah which was revealed immediately
after migration. The battles of Badr, Uhud and Ditch took
place after this. Whether this was clear or not to Watt, the
Arabs were very clear that the centre of Muslims was the
Ka‘bah and they wanted to revive the nation of Abraham (sws).
Some biographers, such
as Hussain Hekal of Egypt have suggested that the purpose of
the Prophet (sws)’s journey was to offer hajj. This
speculation too is wrong due to many reasons. Firstly, it is
known that the Prophet proceeded to Makkah as soon as the
month of Dhu al-Qa‘d began. If he had wished to perform Hajj,
the journey would have been undertaken towards the end of Dhu
al-Qa‘dah so that return was possible after two to three
weeks. For the final journey, the Prophet (sws) had used just
such a schedule. If he had wished to offer hajj and left at
the beginning of Dhu al-Qa‘dah, it would have meant an absence
of 50-55 days from his centre. This would not have been
judicious during those tumultuous times. Secondly, the Prophet
himself declared his purpose being that of performing ‘umrah
during negotiations on the treaty of Hudaybiyyah. Thirdly, in
the event of not being able to perform ‘umrah, he paid its
qada in the form of the ‘umrah the next year. Had the hajj
remained unoffered, the qada would have been that of hajj. It
is therefore correct to say that the Prophet (sws) set out to
offer ‘umrah and not hajj.
The Prophet (sws)’s
announcement and intent to proceed for ‘umrah in the light of
his dream overjoyed the Muslims who began to make preparations
on the one hand and created doubts and fears in the hearts of
hypocrites and weak Muslims on the other. They began to think
of excuses to avoid the discomforts of the journey. Hypocrites
living around Madinah declared the journey to be suicide.
According to tradition a pilgrim in the state of ahram could
keep one sword in its sheath for self defence. The enmity of
the Quraysh was evident to the hypocrites. They knew well that
the Quraysh were lusting for the Prophet (sws)’s blood and
that they would consider unarmed Muslims arriving in Makkah as
easy prey. They could not believe, therefore, that Muslims
would be able to protect themselves from the warring Quraysh.
They were of the firm opinion that those going to Makkah would
not return alive. Referring to these fearful doubts of the
hypocrites, the Qur’an said:
Nay, ye thought that the Messenger and the
Believers would never return to their families; this seemed
pleasing in your hearts, and ye conceived an evil thought, for
ye are a people lost [in wickedness]. (48:12)
Some Muslims thought
of this pilgrimage in terms of monetary benefits. They
believed that those participating in wars hoped for booty in
case of victory whereas this journey was not only dangerous
but also devoid of any possibility of financial advantages. It
was, therefore, of no use to participate in such a mission.
Thus, hypocrites and those Muslims avoided the journey and
stayed at home.
Departure for Makkah
As soon as the month
of Dhu al-Qa‘dah in 6th Hijri began, the Prophet (sws) gave
orders to proceed on the journey, in which 1400-1500 faithful
Muslims accompanied him. They had 70 camels for sacrifice.
Collars were hung around the necks of these camels to
demarcate their sacrificial nature. At the predetermined place
of Dhu al-Halifah, the entire group put on their ahram for
‘umrah and proceeded to Makkah. Bisr bin Sufyan Ka‘bi (rta)
was sent forward to do a reconnaissance so that he could
inform of any unexpected move on the part of the enemy.
According to established norm, every pilgrim had one sword in
his sheath and no other war equipment.
Two stops before
Makkah, Sufyan Ka‘bi (rta) informed the Prophet (sws) that the
Quraysh were under a misunderstanding. They believed that the
Muslims wanted to overpower them under the guise of offering
‘umrah. Since both the Quraysh and Muslims were in a state of
war with each other, the former had vowed that they would not
allow the latter to enter Makkah. They were ready to fight and
had also called upon their allied tribes: their armies called
Ahabish.
As an initial tactic, 200 soldiers under the command of Khalid
ibn Walid had been posted at Dhu Tuwa. According to
narratives, after hearing this, the Prophet (sws) said with
great sorrow: “regrets upon Quraysh. They have been destroyed
by their desire to wage war. Even then, they have not learned
any lesson. It could have been that they may not have come
between the Arabs and myself. They would not have suffered at
all. Had the Arabs killed me, their desire would have been
fulfilled. If Almighty Allah had given me power over the
Arabs, the Quraysh would have accepted Islam in vast numbers.
And if they had not, then they would have chosen the way of
war, of which power they possess. They harbour great
misgivings about me. By God, I shall continue to struggle with
them, armed with the message that Allah has given to me until
it dominates them or I die.”
These words
of the Prophet (sws) carry great significance. They contain
the expression of love of kinship and generosity that he held
for his people, as well as severe pain at the foolishness and
non compromising nature of the Quraysh. In spite of this, he
has clearly expressed his firm desire to meet the obligations
of his status because there was no possibility to make any
compromise on this.
Entry in the Bounds of
Haram
The Prophet (sws)
consulted his Companions in the light of the information
received from his informant. The consensus was to take a route
other than the main road. The Prophet (sws) turned to the
right of the main route with guidance from a Companion who
knew the way and, after passing through difficult pathways and
rocky places, reached the plains of Hudaybiyyah during the
night. This is only nine miles from Makkah and marks the
beginning of the Haram. (Today, this place is called
Shamisiyyah. Documents of pilgrims are checked here). This was
a foresighted action. Obviously, if the caravan had not left
the main route, they would have been barred from progress just
two stops from Makkah. It could have been possible that a
fight ensued and the desire to pay respects to the Haram would
have remained just a desire. By changing the direction of the
caravan, God postponed the danger of meeting the Quraysh and
enabled the group to reach a place which was within the
boundaries of the Haram. Here, the members of the group were
relieved, in that even if they had not entered the Haram, they
were at least inside its boundaries. The danger of any battle
was also reduced because fighting within the Haram boundaries
was not allowed according to Arab tradition. If the Quraysh
violated this, they would have been criticised in all of
Arabia. Muslims, therefore, possessed a dual protection here.
One was due to the sacred month and the other because of their
location around the Haram. They were safe from the Quraysh.
According to
narratives, the she camel, al-Qaswa, of the Prophet (sws),
stopped at a place in Hudaybiyyah and despite many efforts,
did not move. People considered this to be the whim of an
animal but the Prophet (sws) said that “being whimsical is not
in the nature of al-Qaswa. It seems as if the God who had
stopped the feet of elephants in their track has also stopped
the feet of this camel. Hence, everyone should stop here.
Today, whatever anyone asks of me which is meant to pay
tribute to anything declared by God as sacred, I shall not
desist in acting upon it.”
The Prophet (sws) was referring to the incident of the People
of the Elephant that had occurred about eight years earlier.
At that time, the ruler of Yemen, Abrahah, had attacked Makkah.
When his army marched into Mina, the elephants that were a
part of the army stopped at the Valley of Muhassar and refused
to get up. God had put brakes on their feet to ensure that the
sanctity of His House would not be destroyed. The Prophet (sws)
deduced from the stopping of al-Qaswa that if the Muslims were
to move away from Hudaybiyyah, the Quraysh would be ready to
fight and would not stop at destroying the sanctity of the
House of God. Therefore, for the sake of protecting the
Haram’s sanctity, the Prophet (sws) gave orders for camping at
Hudaybiyyah. That his fears were absolutely correct came to be
known later as circumstances unfolded.
When the Quraysh
troops marching towards ‘Asfan came to know that the Muslim
caravan had turned away to the left, they returned to the city
to carry out its defence. When they found that the Muslims had
reached Hudaybiyyah, they proceeded to Hudaybiyyah. One of
their groups surrounded the camp of the Muslims to keep a
watch over them. Observing the stopping of al-Qaswa as a sign
from the unseen and assessing a real possibility of an attack
from the Quraysh, the Prophet (sws), in answer to the hostile
and hard approach of the Quraysh, decided to soften his own
stance. The reason was not any weakness, but the desire to
obey and respect God’s instructions which has been termed as
reverence and piety by God Himself.
Such [is his state]:
and whoever holds in honour the symbols of Allah, [in the
sacrifice of animals], such [honour] should come truly from
piety of heart. (22:32)
This verse, related to
the obligations of hajj and ‘umrah had been revealed earlier.
(Translated by Nikhat
Sattar)
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