The protests in Iran are not only about economics and politics, they’re also about Islam. Iran in the 1960’s saw mini skirts, smiling women with uncovered hair, men and women freely holding hands on university campuses, and in the air, there was a sense that progress was possible. Then the Shah was deposed during the 1979 Islamic Revolution, and the Ayatollah and imams came to power. Iran had been purified, returned to its Islamic roots of Mohammed. Today, we are witnessing the Persian people rise up again against the Iranian Islamic regime and say “no more”. How will this play out?
Over the 1400 years of Islam, there is a pattern that can be observed that I call THE GRAVITY OF MOHAMMED. It can be visualized as a cycling wave graph, or a sine wave (see figure below). An Islamic nation will cycle between secularism and hard line Sharia, a push and pull of modernity vs Mohammed or civilizations retracting and embracing the perfect example of Mohammed. It is hard to escape the Sunna of Mohammed which the Sharia implements. As long as you have the remnants of Islam in a society, Mohammed will always return. Said another way, as long as a society believes Mohammed is the prophet of Allah, Sharia will return.
Examples of this are Turkey and Iran. Turkey under Ataturk pulled away from Mohammed, only to return with Erdogan. Iran pulled away from Sharia under the Shah only to return under the Ayatollah, and now there is a good possibility that the Persians may push away from the Sharia again. However, this will surely be temporary as the only way to destroy rule by Sharia is to destroy the belief that Mohammed is the prophet of Allah (the Shahada). Thus, the Gravity of Mohammed predicts that although Iran will pull away from Sharia for now, and maybe for years to come, it will fall back again to its Islamic roots. Like gravity, Mohammed is always there.
by Kenneth Roberts
Photoshopping is slang for the digital editing of photos. In photoshopping, images are edited and manipulated to create an illusion or deception.
Helicopter Shark Mohammed
The ‘Helicopter_Shark‘ was a famous example of photo manipulation in which two photographs were digitally combined to give the impression that a shark was leaping from the water to attack a military helicopter. Modern Islamic apologetics go to similar lengths to manipulate the biography of Mohammed even adding elements not in the foundational texts. A typical example of Islamic ‘helicopter shark’ is this story:
There was a lady who threw garbage in the path of the Prophet on a daily basis. One day, she didn‘t do it. The prophet went to inquire about her health, because he thought she might be sick. This lady ended up converting to Islam.
There is no reference provided for the preceding, because it is not Islamic. The actual story is from the life of Abdul Baha, a founder of Baha’iism that has been photoshopped into Mohammed’s biography by modern Muslim apologists.
The real story of a woman who insulted Mohammed is found below with its reference:
A Jewish woman used to insult the Prophet and say bad things about him, so a man strangled her until she died, and the Prophet ruled that no blood money was due in this case. (Abu Dawud 4349)
Glamour Photo Mohammed
In glamour photos, the term “airbrushing” describes the removal of physical imperfections of photo models or the enhancement of their attributes in an attempt to fabricate an image of unrealistic female perfection.
Modern Muslims similarly create an ‘airbrushed’ or ‘photoshopped’ image of Mohammed by leaving out his offensive traits and enhancing any qualities that appeal to our modern concerns for human rights and civil liberties.
Here is an example of ‘airbrushed’ Mohammed found on an Islamic website:
“He (Mohammed) suffered from all but harmed none. He was affectionate and loving towards his friends and forgiving and merciful towards his enemies. He was sincere and honest in his mission; good and fair in his dealings; and just in deciding affairs of friends as well as of enemies. In short, all goodness and excellence have been combined in the person and personality of Hazrat Mohammed”.
However, the unphotoshopped Mohammed is neither affectionate nor merciful:
“Aisha, the Mother of the Faithful, was asked, ‘How did the Messenger of Allah behave?’ She replied, ‘His eye did not weep for anyone.’” Tabari VIII:40
Object Removal
A main aim in photo editing is the removal of unwanted objects in the photo. Before photoshopping, this was done by airbrushing. Stalin routinely airbrushed his enemies out of photographs. The term “airbrushed out” has come to mean rewriting history to pretend something was never there.
Contemporary academics have called the process of removing components from an image object removal. It is considered unethical because it is an intentional misrepresentation of historical facts.
The ‘objects’ modern Islamists want to remove are Mohammed’s …
…authoritarianism
‘It is not fitting for a Believer, man or woman, when a matter has been decided by Allah and His Messenger to have any option about their decision.’ Koran 33.36
…megalomania
‘While I was sleeping, the keys to the treasures of the world were brought to me and put in my hand.’ Bukhari:V4B52N220
…misogyny
“Hang up your scourge where your wife can see it.” Kash-shaf (the revealer) of al-Zamkhshari (Vol. 1, p. 525)
…intolerance
“No two religions are to exist in the Arab Peninsula”, The Sira, pp. 50, 51
…compulsion
“The apostle of God defeated the people until they entered Islam by hook or by crook.” “The Ordinances of Qur’an”, Al Shafi, page 50
…supremacism
“Make war on them until idolatry shall cease and God’s religion shall reign supreme.” K. 8:39
…terrorism
“How many a township have We destroyed! As a raid by night, or while they slept at noon, Our terror came unto them.” K. 7:4
‘Terrorists cannot be Muslims’ or can they?
One of the claims of modern Islamists is that ‘a terrorist cannot be a Muslim’.
Just after 9-11, the late Anwar Awlaki, mentor to notable terrorists, said, “There is no way that the people who did this (9-11) could be Muslim, and if they claim to be Muslim, then they have perverted their religion.” Awlaki’s later terrorism proved he did not believe his own definition.
By Awlaki’s definition, many leading Muslims of history are excluded from the religion of Islam:
Osama Bin Laden was not a Muslim when he cast terror into the hearts of Americans on 9-11.
Sayeed Maududi was not a Muslim when he wrote: “Islam wishes to destroy all States and Governments anywhere on the face of the earth which are opposed to the ideology and programme of Islam.” Sayeed Abdul A’la Maududi, Jihad in Islam, p.9
Sultan Mehmet V was also not a Muslim when he signed the Universal Fatwa of 1915 sanctioning the genocide of three million of his Christian subjects.
Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406), was not a Muslim when he wrote, “the holy war is a religious duty, because of the universalism of the Muslim mission and (the obligation to) convert everybody to Islam either by persuasion or by force.” (emphasis added)
Tamurlane was not a Muslim when he wrote glowingly of his mass murders: ‘I had crossed the rivers Ganges and Jumna and I had sent many of the abominable infidels to hell, and had purified the land from their foul existence….Thanks to almighty Allah.”
Hajjaj, the governor of Iraq was not a Muslim when he ordered his general Qasim to “behave in such a way that no enemy of the true faith is left in that country”.
Mohammed’s successful general Khalid ibn Walid was not a Muslim when Mohammed sent him to destroy all the pagan temples of the neighboring tribes of Mecca. Khalid reached the Jazima tribe and asked them to say, “We are Muslims”. But they said, “We are Sabians” – whereupon Khalid slaughtered the whole tribe.
By Awlaki’s definition, Mohammed could not be a Muslim either. The Sira (his official biography) is filled with violent acts initiated by Mohammed. In the Sira, Mohammed orders or leads a violent act every six weeks resulting in assassination, plundering, enslavement, rape, genocide, ethnic cleansing and territorial conquest.
The Sira explicitly states that many detractors ran away because of Mohammed’s acts of terrorism. The Sira depicts Mohammed as a successful terrorist. Muslim apologists seldom refer to the Sira…object removal.
The Ethics of Manipulating Mohammed’s Image
In Islam, it is considered moral to manipulate Mohammed’s image to create a favorable impression with kafirs. The moral basis for photoshopping Mohammed’s ‘image’ is called taqiyya.
Taqiyya is sacred concealment for the advancement of Islamic political supremacism. Taqiyya is a form of verbal jihad used to defeat Islam’s opponents by using disinformation. Mohammed used taqiyya frequently in the Sira.
Taqiyya is a doctrine of disinformation endorsed by all branches of Islam. Governments of Islamic countries use taqiyya as a normative policy technique, especially in Shi’ite Iran where taqiyya has greater acceptability.
Taqiyya is basically a kind of object removal.
Our Reaction to Islamic Photoshopping
In light of Islam’s dualistic doctrine of taqiyya, should we ever take at face value the depictions of Mohammed invented by modern apologists of Islam? Or should we rigorously investigate them and do our own research into Islam’s foundational texts to determine whether they have been photoshopped?
Should we not compare the photoshopped versions of Islam with Islam’s canonical writers and spokesmen? Should we not study orthodox authorities of Islam such as Bukhari, Ibn Ishaq, Taymiyyah, Tabari, Nawawi, Ibn Kathir, since they represent Islam’s canonical consensus?
As we saw, Muslim apologists, like the late Anwar Awlaki, use taqiyya to justify misrepresentations of Mohammed’s biography or of the supremacist agenda of jihad, Mohammed’s method.
We need to ask: ‘Has this image of a non-violent Mohammed been photoshopped?’
Bill Warner, Director, Center for the Study of Political Islam
Permalink https://politicalislam.com/photoshopped-mohammed/
Copyright © 2011 CBSX, LLC, politicalislam.com
The judgment of our leaders about Bin Laden:
“Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader…” Barack Obama
“He [Bin Laden] never represented Islam. I actually question whether he was a Muslim or not.” Imam Mohammad Ahmed al Sherif, Imam of the Islamic Center of Nashville. Nashville Scene, May 5, 2011.
When the President and an imam declare that Bin Laden was not really a Muslim, it must be true. According to the establishment, we are to swallow their declarations as the full truth and go on about our business living in a world where all Islam is good. Those “bad” actions are done by I-know-they-are-practicing-jihad-but-they-are-not-really-Muslims Muslims. Or more succinctly: a jihadist is not really a Muslim.
Really? A jihadist is not really a Muslim? This news is going to be such a disappointment to Mohammed, the original Mohammed, the jihadist Mohammed. And let us not leave out the jihadist Allah.
Should we declare that all of the first caliphs who were personal companions of Mohammed were not really Muslims as well? After all, all four of the Rightly Guided Caliphs (the first four leaders of Islam after Mohammed’s death) started where Mohammed left off and waged jihad for their entire lives. They created the first stage of the Islamic empire. Why did they practice jihad? Because they were taught by example by Mohammed.
Mohammed’s example was crystal clear. According to the Sira, the sacred biography of Mohammed, he was involved in over 65 acts of jihad, or as we say today, 65 acts of terror. And that was in a 9 year period. Bin Laden was small fry, in comparison to Mohammed.
Why are we being told that Bin Laden was not a real Muslim? The propaganda is that violence has nothing to do with Islam. But Islam is based on Mohammed and he was violent in every way. He assassinated those who opposed him, enslaved thousands and sold them for money to wage jihad, he tortured men to death for money, tortured slaves to get information from them, created a policy of rape of Kafir women and on and on. The only reason to call Bin Laden a non-Muslim is that he did not do enough jihad. Oops, pardon me, terror.
But wait! Maybe the reason that Bin Laden was not a Muslim was because it is true that violent behavior is not Islamic. And since Mohammed was much more violent than Bin Laden, we are left with the conclusion that Mohammed was not a Muslim. He was too violent to be a Muslim.
Of course, there is the argument that Mohammed had just the right amount of violence against the Kafirs (non-Muslims) and that he defines what is right about everything Islamic. In that case the imam and Barack Obama were wrong about Bin Laden. Now we have ourselves in a bind. Was Mohammed wrong or were Obama and the imam wrong? Hmmm. I am betting that Obama and the imam are wrong.
Bin Laden was a fine Muslim in the sense of being a fine jihadist, just like Mohammed, only not as violent. But Bin Laden was the student and Mohammed was the master.
Bill Warner, Director, Center for the Study of Political Islam
Permalink https://politicalislam.com/mohammed-a-real-muslim/
Copyright © 2011 CBSX, LLC, politicalislam.com
Mohammed and the Unbelievers
The Battle That Changed The World
CHAPTER 12
FIGHTING IN ALLAH’S CAUSE-BADR
I428 Mohammed heard from spies that Abu Sufyan, the chief of the Quraysh, was coming from Syria with a large caravan and thirty or forty men. Mohammed called the Muslims together and said, “Go out and attack it, and perhaps Allah will give us the prey.” Many were eager, but others were reluctant. Some of the Quraysh were their relatives and they did not want to fight and kill them.
I428 As the caravan approached Medina, Abu Sufyan became worried and ques-tioned every rider on the road about Mohammed. Then he was informed that indeed Mohammed was going to attack. He sent out a fast rider to Mecca for aid. When the rider entered Mecca, he called out, “Oh Quraysh, the caravan! Mohammed and his companions are lying in wait to steal your property. Help! Help!”
I430 The Quraysh said this raid would not be as easy as killing an unarmed man. The leaders and their men saddled up and prepared to protect what was theirs, but as they prepared for war they remembered an old score with an enemy clan. The quarrel had never been settled. Would their enemies attack Mecca while they were away? One of the chiefs of the enemy clan said they would not attack and the Quraysh left with haste.
I433 Mohammed and his men headed out of Medina for what was to prove one of the most important battles in all of history, a battle that would change the world for-ever. The party had seventy camels and about three hundred men. On the way they met a nomad and asked if he had seen the Quraysh. He had not. Then the men told him to salute the prophet of Allah. The nomad said, “Well, if he is a prophet, can he tell me what was in the womb of my she-camel?” One of Mohammed’s men replied, “Don’t question Mohammed, but I can tell you what is in the womb of your camel. It is a goat from the last time you had sex with her.” They went on their way but no wiser.
I434 News came to Mohammed that the Quraysh had set out from Mecca with armed men to defend their property. He stopped and held a strategy meeting. The Meccan Immigrants said they would go wherever Mohammed told them to go and do whatever he asked. The leader of the Helpers said although their treaty with Mo-hammed covered only the defense of Medina they would fight for him for any reason, at any place, and at any time. “We believe in you. We hear and we will obey. By Allah, if you asked us to plunge into the sea we would do so to the last man. We do not fear the enemy. We are experienced warriors and trustworthy in combat.”
I435 Mohammed was cheered. He said, “I see the enemy dead on the ground. Al-lah has promised me either the caravan or their army.” They headed toward Badr and camped near there for the night. Mohammed sent several scouts to the well at Badr, where they found two black slaves with water camels. The scouts felt sure they were from the Quraysh caravan and brought them back to Mohammed. Two of Mohammed’s men questioned them as Mohammed prayed nearby. The men replied that they were from the Quraysh army. Mohammed’s men began to beat and torture the slaves as Mohammed continued praying. Then the slaves said they were from Abu Sufyan’s caravan and the men stopped beating them.
I436 Mohammed told his men that the slaves had been truthful until they started to beat and torture them. Then the slaves had lied, but it had been the lie their captors wanted to hear. “By Allah, you beat them when they tell the truth and leave them alone when they lie.” Mohammed then took over the interrogation and asked the men how many of the Quraysh there were. They did not know. He then asked how many camels they killed each day for food and was told nine or ten. That meant there were nine hundred to a thousand Quraysh fighters. He then asked who the leaders of the Quraysh were, and they told him. Mohammed was delighted and told his warriors that Mecca had sent their best men to be slaughtered.
I437 Two other scouts had obtained information from two village girls that the caravan would arrive the following day.
I437 Abu Sufyan rode ahead of his caravan and met one of his own scouts at the well. He asked if they had seen anything to cause concern, and they told him they had seen only two riders on the hill above. Sufyan rode to the top of the hill, dis-mounted, and examined the camel dung there. He crumbled the dung in his hands and saw a certain type of date seeds. Medina! The camels were from Medina. Mo-hammed’s scouts had been there! He hurried back and directed the caravan away from Badr.
I438 Abu Sufyan had saved the caravan, and now he went to the armed band of the Quraysh who had come out to protect it. He told them the caravan was safe and they could return home. But the band’s leader, Abu Jahl, said they were now near Badr and it was a time for a fair, and to the fair they would go. They would feast and drink and the Arabs would respect them for not running away from Mohammed. Two of the clans who were allied with the Quraysh wanted no part of such a useless display and bowed out and returned to Mecca.
I439 Each army had an idea of the location of the other. Mohammed went ahead to choose a place to camp and set up for battle on the morrow. One of his men asked if the choice were by Allah or if Mohammed made a personal choice. It was a personal choice. His man then suggested they choose a spot at the well farthest from the area where the Quraysh would camp and plug the wells between them and the Quraysh. That way, the next day they would have water and the Quraysh would have none. Mohammed agreed and put men to the task. Islam would have water and the kafirs would be dry.
I440 The Quraysh marched forth at daybreak. Mohammed watched as they came down the hill into the valley. They stopped at the bottom and sent out a scout. While the scout was gone, the Quraysh began to talk among themselves. Some ar-gued not to fight because half the Muslims were from Mecca and kin. One man had a dream that portended ill for the Quraysh. Morale was sinking but one of the Quraysh rallied them with the memory of Amr whom the Muslims had killed even though he was Quraysh.
I440 As Mohammed saw the Quraysh march into the small valley, he said, “O Allah, here come the Quraysh, in their vanity and pride, contending with You and calling me a liar. O Allah, give me the help You promised. Destroy them this morning!”
I443 One of the Quraysh had a hot temper and decided on his own that he would drink from the well in front of the Muslims. Off he went to be met by Islam’s finest and strongest man, Hamza. In one blow Hamza’s sword cut through the man’s leg at the shin. He fell on his back with his leg pointed toward his companions, gushing blood. The man then started to crawl to the well. Hamza killed him by sword before he could reach the well. Islam drew first blood, and the killing was a bad omen for the Quraysh.
I443 Three of the Muslims stepped forth from their ranks to engage in single-handed combat with three of the Quraysh. One of the Quraysh yelled for them to identify themselves. The Muslims gave their names, and the Quraysh replied, “O Mohammed, send forth some warriors who are peers of ours; we are nobles. Don’t send peasants to fight with nobility.” Mohammed sent forth three new men. They identified themselves, and the Quraysh said, “Yes, these are nobles and our peers.”
I443 The men went at each other with swords. Two of the Muslims, Ali and Hamza, quickly killed their opponents. The other Muslim and Quraysh wounded each other and Ali and Hamza quickly killed the Quraysh. They took their mortally wounded comrade back to Mohammed. The dying Muslim asked Mohammed if he was a mar-tyr. “Indeed, you are,” replied Mohammed.
B4,53,352 Allah’s Apostle said, “Allah guarantees him who strives in His Cause, and whose motivation for going out is nothing but jihad in His Cause and belief in His Word, that He will admit him into Paradise, if martyred, or bring him back to his dwelling place, whence he has come out, with what he gains of reward and spoils of war.”
I445 Some arrows flew and one Muslim was killed. Mohammed addressed his army. “By Allah, every man who is slain this day by fighting with courage and advancing, not retreating, will enter Paradise.” One of his men who had been eating dates said, “You mean there is nothing between me and Paradise except being killed by the Quraysh?” He flung the dates to the side, picked up his sword, and set out to fight. He got his wish and was later killed.
I445 One of Mohammed’s men asked what made Allah laugh. Mohammed an-swered, “When a warrior plunges into the midst of the enemy without armor.” The man removed his coat of mail, picked up his sword, and made ready to attack.
I445 It was time for the two armies to close ranks and move forward. Mohammed had said his warriors were not to start until he gave the order. Now he took a handful of pebbles and threw them at the Quraysh and said, “Curse those faces.” The Muslims advanced. The battle had begun.
B4,59,333 Az-Zubair said, “I met Ubaida Bin Said Bin Al-As on the day of the Battle of Badr, and he was covered with armor, so much that only his eyes were visible. He was surnamed Abu-Al-Karish. He said proudly, ‘I am Abu-Al-Karish.’
“I attacked him with the spear and pierced his eye and he died. I put my foot over his body to pull that spear out, but even then I had to use a great force to take it out as its both ends were bent.”
Urwa said, “Later on, Allah’s Apostle asked Az-Zubair for the spear, and he gave it to him. When Allah’s Apostle died, Az-Zubair took it back. After that Abu Bakr demanded it, and he gave it to him, and when Abu Bakr died, Az-Zubair took it back. Umar then demanded it from him, and he gave it to him. When Umar died, Az-Zubair took it back, and then Uthman demanded it from him, and he gave it to him. When Uthman was mar-tyred, the spear remained with Ali’s offspring. Then Abdullah Bin Az-Zubair demanded it back, and it remained with him till he was martyred.”
I446 Mohammed had issued orders that his uncle, Al Abbas, who had defended Mohammed in Mecca, was not to be killed. One of the Muslims said, “We are to kill our own relatives while we save Al Abbas? By Allah, if I meet him I will sink my sword into his flesh.”
I446 When Mohammed heard a report of this he said to Umar, “Should the face of the uncle of a prophet be marked with the sword?” Umar said, “Let me cut off the head of the man who said that! He is a false Muslim.” The Muslim who had made the remark said, “I never felt safe after that.”
I446 While the battle was raging, one of the Muslims approached Al Abbas and told him of his security. He asked if his friends would be saved as well. “No, we will not spare any of your friends.” He replied, “In that case I will die with them. The women of Mecca will not say that I saved myself and forsook my friends.” He then said:
A son of the Free betrays not his friend
Till he is dead, or sees him safe on his way. -Al Abbas
He was killed.
I446 As the battle was ending and the prisoners were being rounded up, Moham-med saw a look of disgust on Saed’s face. He said, “You seem to dislike what you see.” Saed replied, “Yes, by Allah, this is our first defeat of the kafirs and we should slaugh-ter them all to the last man.”
I451 As the battle wound down, Mohammed issued orders for the fighters to be on the lookout for Abu Jahl, the enemy of Allah, among the slain. He was found still fighting in a thicket. When a Muslim fighter got to within striking distance of Abu Jahl, the Muslim made for him and cut off his lower leg and sent it flying. It flew like a date stone flying from the pestle in a date mill. Another Muslim passed as Abu Jahl lay dying and put his foot on his neck. The Muslim said, “Has Allah put you to shame, enemy of Allah?” Abu Jahl gasped, “How has He shamed me? Am I any more remarkable than any other you have killed?” The Muslim cut off his head.
I452 He took the head back to Mohammed and said, “Here is the head of the en-emy of Allah,” and threw it at Mohammed’s feet. The prophet said, “Praise be to Al-lah.”
B4,53,369 At the Battle of Badr, I [Abdur-Rahman] stood in the front line between two young boys and wished that I had been the stronger man. One of them got my attention and said, “Uncle, do you know Abu Jahl?”
I said, “Yes, why do you ask?”
He replied, “People tell me he speaks ill of Mohammed. By Allah, if I see him, I will not break off my attack until one of us
is dead.”
I was shocked to hear this. Then the other boy said to me the same thing. Sometime later, I saw Abu Jahl and I pointed him out to the boys, saying, “There is the man you seek.”
After ferociously attacking and killing him, the boys went to Mohammed and told him of Abu Jahl’s death.
Mohammed asked, “Who killed him?” They both truthfully said, “I have killed him.”
Mohammed asked, “Did you clean your swords?”
They answered, “No.”
Mohammed glanced at their swords and said, “Obviously, you both killed him, so his possessions will be divided between the two of you.”
I455 As the bodies were dragged to the well, one of the Muslims saw the body of his father thrown in. He said, “My father was a virtuous, wise, kind, and cultured man. I had hoped he would become a Muslim, but he died a kafir. His abode is Hell-fire for-ever.” Before Islam, killing of kin and tribal brothers had been forbidden since the dawn of time. After Islam, brother would kill brother and sons would kill fathers fighting in Allah’s cause: Jihad.
I454 The bodies of the Quraysh were thrown into a well. The Apostle of Allah leaned over the well and shouted at the bodies, “O people of the well, have you found what Allah promised to be true?” The Muslims were puzzled by his question. “Are you speaking to dead people?” they asked. Mohammed explained that the dead could understand him.
I454 In the middle of the night Mohammed’s companions heard him say, “O peo-ple of the well. Have you found what my lord promised me to be true? You were evil kinsfolk to your prophet. You called me a liar when others believed me. You cast me out when others took me in. You fought against me when others fought alongside me. Have you found what your Lord promised you to be true?”
I456 Now it was time to take the property from the dead who could no longer claim what was theirs. It was now the spoils of jihad and the profit of Islam. As the spoils of war piled up the Muslims began to quarrel over who got what for profit. Those who were on the front lines argued that they did the killing; therefore, the goods were theirs. Those who stayed behind to guard Mohammed said they had equal right. Mo-hammed confiscated the whole trove. He then divided it equally among all who were there. He took one-fifth for himself.
B4,53,359 Uthman did not join the Badr battle because he was married to one of the daughters of Allah’s Apostle, and she was ill. So, the Prophet said to him, “You will get a reward and a share from the spoils of war similar to the reward and the share of one who has taken part in the Badr battle.”
Those who survived the battle became rich through the spoils of war. The dead were martyrs and had the best reward.
B4,52,64 Um Ar-Rubai bint Al-Bara came to the Prophet and said, “O Al-lah’s Prophet! Will you tell me about Hartha?”
Hartha had been killed [i.e., martyred] on the day of Badr with an arrow thrown by an unidentified person.
She added, “If he is in Paradise, I will be patient; otherwise, I will weep bitterly for him.”
Mohammed said, “O mother of Hartha! There are Gardens in Paradise and your son got the best place in Paradise.”
There was one prisoner from Mecca whom Mohammed knew well. He knew the stories of the Greeks and Persians. When Mohammed had told his stories of the Jews and Arabs, he had told the stories of the Greeks and Persians and said he was the bet-ter story-teller. It was Al Nadr.
I459 They set off for Medina with the treasure of war and the prisoners to be ran-somed, except for Al Nadr. Mohammed had a grudge against him and ordered him killed. Before the sword struck, Al Nadr asked, “Who will care for my family?”
M230 The prophet replied, “Hell!” After he fell dead, Mohammed said, “Unbeliever in Allah and His prophet and His book! I give thanks to Allah who has killed you and made my eyes satisfied.”
I462 A survivor took the news of the disaster to the Meccans. One of the chiefs or-dered that there be no wailing or public mourning so the Muslims could draw no pleasure from their loss. They also decided to be slow to pay the ransom to Moham-med for the captured Meccans in order to help lower the ransom price.
I464 An old Muslim had gone from Medina to Mecca on a pilgrimage and wound up in Mecca after the loss. He was made a prisoner and was exchanged for one of the Meccans.
A POSSIBLE NEW WIFE
I461 When Mohammed saw Ummul Fadl she was a crawling baby and he said, “If she grows up and I am still alive, I will marry her.” At this time he was about 55.
Mohammed and the Unbelievers
A Setback
CHAPTER 15
THE BATTLE OF UHUD
I555 Back at Mecca those who had lost at the Battle of Badr told others, “Men of Quraysh, Mohammed has killed your best men. Give us money so we may take re-venge.” Money was raised, men were hired, and an army was put together.
I557 One of the Quraysh had a black slave who could throw a spear and never miss the mark. He made a deal with the slave: “If you kill Hamza, then I will free you.” Hamza had killed the Quraysh’s uncle at Badr and was Mohammed’s uncle.
I558 So the Meccans camped near Medina, ready for war, ready for revenge. The Muslims now needed a strategy. Many, including Mohammed, wanted to sit and let the Meccans attack them. The town itself could be used in a defensive way—walls and rooftops would give any defender a strong advantage. But blood ran hot in the Mus-lim warriors. They were not afraid to meet the Meccans on the field of combat man to man. After Badr, they were invincible; Allah had said as much. “Mohammed, lead us to our enemies,” they said. “Don’t let them think we are weak cowards.” The ar-guments continued until Mohammed went in his house and came out in his armor.
I559 But now, seeing him in his armor, the hot-bloods repented and said they should never have tried to persuade Mohammed. They admitted they had been wrong. Mohammed said, “When a prophet puts on his armor, he should not take it off until there has been war.” So he marched out with a thousand men to meet the Meccans. But the uncertainties continued; one of the clan leaders of three hundred men said there was no reason to be there and turned his men toward home. Mo-hammed cursed them and kept on going toward the battlefield.
I560 When he saw the Meccans, Mohammed said, “Let there be no fighting until I give the word.” What he saw made his blood boil. The Meccans had turned their camels and horses loose in the crops of the Medinans. Mohammed placed fifty arch-ers to protect his rear and flank and told them to hold their ground. Mohammed put on a second coat of armor.
I561 Mohammed took his sword, thrust it into the air, and cried, “Who will take this sword and use it as it should be used?” Two different men stood to take it, and he turned away from them. One man asked what was the right. Mohammed said, “That you should strike the enemy until it breaks or bends.” The man took the sword. He put a red turban on his head and strutted in front of the Muslims, waving the sword at the Meccans.
M31,6040 Anas reported that Allah’s Messenger took hold of his sword on the Day of Uhud and said, “Who would take it from me?”
All the persons stretched their hands saying, “I would do it, I would do it.”
Allah’s Apostle said, “Who would take it in order to use it as it should be used ?”
Then the people withdrew their hands. Abu Dujana said, “I am here to take it and fulfil its rights.” He took it and struck the heads of the polytheists.
M31,5932 During the Battle of Uhud a polytheist fiercely attacked the Mus-lims. Mohammed said, “Saed, shoot an arrow.”
Saed said, “May my mother and father be taken as ransom for you.” He drew an arrow and shot a featherless arrow at the polytheist aiming at his side. He fell down and his private parts were exposed. Allah’s Messenger laughed so that I saw his front teeth.
I562 Abu Sufyan, the chief of the Meccans, spoke to his standard-
bearers. “You had charge of our flag at Badr and you saw what happened. The for-tunes of an army depend upon the standard. You must guard it well or you need to give it to us and we will save you the trouble.” The standard-bearer was incensed. “You want us to surrender the banner to you? Just wait until tomorrow and see what we do!” Abu Sufyan was pleased and smiled inside.
I562 The morrow came and the battle began. The Meccans had brought their women for the sole purpose of urging the men on. Men do not want to be cowards in front of women. The women began to beat their tambourines and chant poetry:
If you advance we will hug you
And place soft rugs beneath you.
If you retreat we will leave you,
Leave and no more love you.
I564 Hamza fought like a lion. He was big and skilled and killed many Meccans. As he approached one, he cried, “Come here, you son of a clitoris cutter!” (The Meccan warrior’s mother performed the operation of removing the clitoris from young girls.) Hamza struck and killed the man in a blow. Lurking around the edges of the battle was the black slave charged with killing Hamza. He had watched and waited, and now he stepped forth and threw his spear like an athlete. He never missed, and he did not miss now. The spear stuck Hamza in the belly and exited. Hamza strode toward the slave but staggered and fell. The slave watched and waited as Hamza slowly died. When he was dead, the now freed slave stepped up, withdrew his spear, and walked off the field. He had done his job, and he left a free man.
I566 The freed slave lived in Mecca until Mohammed captured the town. He was afraid of Mohammed until someone suggested he convert so Mohammed would forgive him. When Mohammed heard that the man who had killed his uncle had submitted to Islam, he remarked, “Leave him alone. The submission of one man is better than the killing of a thousand kafirs.”
I570 The Muslims fought without any fear and the battle went against the Meccans, who were cut off from their camp. The camp had the treasure—the spoils of war—and the Muslim archers left their positions to get to the spoils. The battle might go to Islam, but the archers would have the treasure. This left the army’s flank and rear open and the Meccan cavalry took advantage and charged the rear. Mohammed was in the rear. The battle suddenly went against Islam.
I571 The Muslims were put to flight and many were slain. Even Mohammed got hit in the face by a rock, broke a tooth, and split his lip. He was incensed. The Meccans were all around and the Muslims had to protect him with their bodies.
M19,4413 When the enemy got the upper hand on the day of the Battle of Uhud, Mohammed was left with only seven men from the Helpers and two men from the Quraysh [the Immigrants]. When the enemy advanced toward him and overwhelmed him, he said, “Who so turns them away from us will attain Paradise or will be my Companion in Paradise.”
A man from the Helpers came forward and fought the enemy until he was killed. The enemy advanced and overwhelmed him again, and Mo-hammed repeated the words, “Who turns them away from us will attain Paradise or will be my Companion in Paradise.” A man from the Helpers came forward and fought until he was killed. This state continued until the seven Helpers were killed one after the other.
Now Mohammed said to his two Companions, “We have not done justice to our Companions.”
M19,4414 On the day of the Battle of Uhud the face of Mohammed was in-jured, his front teeth were damaged, and his helmet was crushed. Fatima, the daughter of Mohammed, was washing the blood from his head, and Ali was pouring water on it from a shield. When Fatima saw that the bleeding had increased on account of pouring water on the wound, she took a piece of mat and burnt it until it was reduced to ashes. She put the ashes on the wound and the bleeding stopped.
I574 At one point the Meccans thought they had killed the man who had brought them so much pain. One Muslim recognized the prophet under his helmet and spread the news that he was alive. Mohammed fled the field. He was a heavy man and, in addition, wearing two suits of armor. He almost could not climb the rocks and hill without help.
I583 The day went to the Meccans, the Quraysh. They did not press their advantage. They had come to extract tribal justice, and they killed about as many of the Muslims as they had lost at Badr. Abu Sufyan, the Meccan leader, agreed through an emissary that they would meet in combat the following year.
I581 After the battle was over, some of the Meccan women who had been “cheer-leaders” for their troops went onto the battlefield and cut off the noses and ears of the Muslim dead and made jewelry of the pieces. From Hamza, Mohammed’s favorite warrior, they even removed the liver. One of the women wrote this poem:
We have paid you back for Badr
And a war that follows a war is violent.
I could not bear the loss of my friends
Nor my brother and his uncle and my first born.
I have slaked my vengeance and fulfilled my vow.
The slave who killed Hamza has cooled the burning in my breast.
I shall thank the slave, now free,
Until my bones rot in the grave. —Hind d. Utba
I584 After Badr, the Meccans had mourned their nobility and heroes. Now it was Mohammed’s turn to mourn. The Koran changed every Muslim corpse into a martyr in the pleasure gardens of heaven.
I586 The dead Muslims were buried in the battlefield. Mohammed said, “I testify that those who are wounded in jihad will be raised by Allah, with his bleeding wounds smelling like the finest perfume.” When Mohammed heard the women weeping for their dead, he wanted wailing for his Uncle Hamza as well. So the women wailed for Hamza and Mohammed felt better.
I587 When Mohammed entered his house he handed his sword to his daughter and told her, “Wash the blood from this for, by Allah, it has served me well today.” The next day he ordered all the fighters who had been at Uhud to marshal themselves and be ready to head out to pursue the enemy. This move was pure strategy to impress upon the enemy that he was still strong and not weakened by his losses. They went about eight miles from Medina and camped for three days before returning to Medina.
I589 Mohammed was the supreme master of the psychology of war. He sent an agent to Abu Sufyan who pretended to be a friend of the Meccans. Abu Sufyan was thinking about going back and finishing off the Muslims. But Mohammed’s agent told Abu Sufyan that Mohammed was coming very soon with an army, the like of which had never been seen. The Muslims were in a state of total fury and would sweep into Hell all who were in front of them. Abu Sufyan, a merchant, left for Mecca and security. The Meccans had settled their tribal score.
THE KORAN AND THE BATTLE OF UHUD
Since Allah had sent angels to the previous Battle of Badr and the outnumbered Muslims triumphed, how could they fail at Uhud? The Koran spends some sixty verses explaining how this happened and how the results were further proof of the alliance between Allah and Mohammed.
I593 Two of the Muslim clans had had doubts about the battle. But Allah was their God, and they did not doubt Islam and went on into the battle because of their belief in Allah and Mohammed.
3:121 Remember when you [Mohammed] left your home early in the morning to lead the believers to their battle stations? Allah heard and knew all. When two of your brigades showed cowardice, Allah protected them both.
I595 The reason for the Muslim loss was that the archers did not hold their ground. When they saw that the Meccans were cut off from their camp, they ran to get the treasure of war. Greed caused them to disobey Mohammed. They were told they should always obey Mohammed; he spoke for the Lord of all.
3:131 Obey Allah and His messenger so that you may receive mercy.
I595 Those who did not follow orders should ask for forgiveness. If they realized the loss was their fault and were remorseful, they would still get their reward of heaven.
3:133 Urge each other on to earn forgiveness from your Lord, and the Paradise as wide as heaven and earth is prepared for the righteous. Those who give freely, whether they are prosperous or poor; who control their anger; who are forgiving (for Allah loves those who do good) who, when they have sinned or wronged themselves, go to Allah and implore His forgiveness for their sins (for who except Allah can forgive you of your sins?) and do not knowingly continue in their sinning; these will be rewarded with their Lord’s forgiveness and with the Garden watered by flowing rivers where they will live forever.
I597 The reason Allah let the Meccans win was to test the Muslims. Now they truly knew themselves. Were they fair-weather friends of Mohammed, or could they see their faults? If they obeyed Mohammed, then they could become true Muslims. A true Muslim never lost his morale, never fell into despair.
3:139 Therefore, do not lose heart or despair; if you are a true believer, you will be victorious.
I596 There were casualties, and they had suffered losses in the battle, but they had to remember the kafirs had also suffered. Over the long view, fortunes went up and down. They had to take the long view and believe in Mohammed and know that all would turn out well in the end. Those who died had the best reward. They were martyrs for Islam. Those really in the wrong were the hypocrites, the pretenders.
3:140 If you have been wounded, be certain that the same has already befallen your enemies. We bring misfortune to mankind in turns so that Allah can discern who are the true believers and so that We may select martyrs from among you. Allah does not love those who do evil.
I596 The Muslims had to realize that Allah would purify them through tests such as the one at Uhud. Those of true faith would not be discouraged, but the hypocrites would be exposed and deprived of all blessing.
3:141 It is also Allah’s purpose to test the believers and to destroy the kafirs.
I596 Did they think they would get to heaven before Allah had tested them? Allah surely knew who was really a believer. A Muslim warrior had to be given a trial, and losing at Uhud was merely a trial.
3:142 Did you think that you would be permitted into Paradise before Allah tested you to see who would fight for His cause [jihad] and endure until the end?
I596 Those who had not taken part in the big victory at Badr were anxious to show off as warriors, but when the actual killing started many were not as good as they thought they would be.
3:143 You used to wish for death before you saw it, but now that you have seen it with your own eyes, you turn and run from it.
I597 The Muslims should not think they were the first to experience failure. In his-tory many had failed in jihad, but they never lost heart or weakened. The lesson of Uhud was to be firm and not get depressed over a small failure.
3:146 Many of the messengers have fought for Allah’s cause [jihad] alongside large armies. They were never frightened by what they encountered on Allah’s path, nor did they weaken or cringe with fear. Allah loves those who stand firm.
I599 Jihad wasn’t over. Soon Islam would bring terror to the kafirs. After death they would burn in Hell. Their destruction would come because they did not believe in the religion of Islam.
3:151 We will strike terror into the hearts of the kafirs because they worship others besides Allah, which He gave them no permission to do. Their home will be the Fire, a terrible resting place for the evil-doers.
I599 The slaughter of kafirs at Badr had gone well and they were about to wipe the kafirs off the face of the earth, thanks to Allah. But then they disobeyed Mohammed. Allah did not destroy them because he was merciful, but their greed for the treasure (spoils of war) was of this world. They had to desire what comes after death, not the wealth of this world. They had to learn this lesson with the grace of Allah.
3:152 Allah fulfilled His covenant with you [Mohammed] when He allowed you to destroy your enemies. And then later, when you [the Muslims at Uhud] lost your courage, arguments broke out among you and you sinned after you had come so close to what you wanted. Some of you wish for the desires of this world and some of you for the world to come. Therefore, He caused you to be defeated so that you might be tested. Now He has forgiven you for Allah shows grace to the believers.
I601 Some accepted the loss but others were anxious because they did not trust Al-lah. The hypocrites divorced themselves from the decision and blamed others for the failure. If they had had their way, then everyone would have been safe. But when Al-lah decreed one’s time had come, nothing could stay the hand of death. Death would come, and it was better to die in jihad.
3:154 Then, after the trouble Allah sent down upon you, He sent down calmness to wash over some of you. Some were overtaken by sleep, and others lay awake, stirred by their own passions, ignorantly thinking unjust thoughts about Allah. And they ask, “What do we gain by this affair?” Say: Truly the affair is entirely in Allah’s hands. They hide in their hearts that which they do not want to tell you. They speak out saying, “If we had any say in this affair then none of us would have been killed here.” Say: If you had stayed at home, those of you who were destined to be killed would have died regardless. This has taken place so that Allah might test your faith and see what is in your hearts. Allah knows the deepest secrets of every heart.
I602 Mohammed was gentle with the Muslims, overlooked their faults, and forgave them. He still consulted with them from time to time, but all final decisions lay with Allah and Mohammed.
3:158 It was because of Allah’s mercy that you spoke so gently to them. For if you had dealt with them severely or been hard-hearted, they would have turned away from you. Therefore, forgive them and ask Allah to forgive them and counsel them in the affair of war; and when you have resolved the matters, put your trust in Allah. Allah loves those who trust Him. If Allah is helping you, no one can defeat you. But if He leaves you, who will be there to help you when He is gone? Therefore, let the faithful put their trust in Allah.
I603 The Muslims’ loss was a test brought on by their decisions. The hypocrites were told to fight in jihad or at least defend the city. Their excuses were those of kafirs.
3:166 The destruction which befell you the day the two armies met in battle was Al-lah’s will so He would recognize who were the true believers and who were the hypocrites. And when they were told, “Come and fight for Allah’s cause [jihad] and drive your enemies back,” they replied, “If we knew how to fight, then we would have followed you.”
3:168 Some of them were closer to unbelief than faith that day. What they said with their mouths was not what was in their hearts, but Allah knew what they were hid-ing in their hearts. It was these who said, while sitting at home, of their brothers, “If only they had listened to us, then they would not have been killed.” Say: Try to avert your death if what you say is true!
I606 The success the kafirs were experiencing was temporary. They would grow in their evil and be punished.
3:178 Do not let the kafirs think that we lengthen their days for their own good. We give them time only hoping that they will commit more serious sins. They will re-ceive a shameful punishment.
POETRY FROM THE MUSLIMS
We attacked you with Allah’s help and sustenance.
Our spearheads directed toward you.
Our lances made gaping wounds among you
Like the mouths of water-skins where the water gushes forth.
We thrust our swords between your shoulders
Where they drank blood again and again.
We made your shit run thin out your asses
Like a camel with diarrhea.
We, and not men like you—children of your mother’s ass,
Meet the fighters when adversity comes.
THE BETRAYAL
I638 One of the tribes south of Medina sent an envoy to Mohammed and asked that he send men who could instruct the tribe in Islam. So Mohammed happily sent six men. When they got near the town where the tribe lived they stopped to rest.
I639 While they were resting, they were surprised to see men with drawn swords approaching. They grabbed their own swords and faced the approaching men. The men told the Muslims they had no intention of harming them but wanted to take them to Mecca and deliver them there. They would be paid, and then the Meccans would ransom them to Mohammed for a profit and vengeance. The Muslims relaxed once their lives were not in danger.
I639 One of the Muslims said he would never trust a kafir and that he was a warrior and would die then and there. So they fought, and three of the Muslims were killed. The remaining three wanted to save their lives and surrendered.
I 640 They were bound and taken to Mecca. On the way, one of them loosed him-self and grabbed a sword. The gang drew back and threw stones until they killed him. In Mecca the other two were sold. The buyers took them outside the sacred area of Mecca. Both of the buyers had vengeance in mind when they bought the men. One of the buyers crucified his purchased Muslim. As he died he cursed each one of them that they might die one by one.
ASSASSINATION AS JIHAD
M276 After Uhud, several kafir tribes allied themselves under the leadership of Sufyan Ibn Khalid. Mohammed dispatched an assassin to kill him, for without his leadership the coalition would fall apart. The assassin, Abdullah, joined Sufyan’s forces and waited until he was alone with him. He killed him and cut off his head and went back to Medina.
M276 When Abdullah got back, he went straight to the mosque where he knew Mohammed always was. Mohammed welcomed him and asked for a report. Abdullah presented Mohammed the head of his enemy. Mohammed was gratified and pre-sented him his walking stick. He said, “This is a token between you and me on the day of resurrection. Very few will have such to lean on in that day.” Abdullah at-tached it to his sword scabbard.
TREACHERY AND A LETHAL MISTAKE
T1442 Another tribe sent an envoy to Mohammed to ask him to come teach Islam. He offered Mohammed a present, but Mohammed would not take a gift from a kafir. He then preached Islam to the envoy; however, Mohammed was reluctant to send anyone to preach Islam, due to the previous ambush of his men.
I649 Discussions were held and Mohammed felt comfortable with sending seventy of his fighters. When the seventy fighters got to the tribe, they got off their camels and sent two men to pasture them. Very soon they found themselves surrounded by men on horses wielding swords with blood in their eyes. The Muslims fought to the last man, who actually was found wounded but alive and lived to die at the Battle of the Trench.
I650 The two Muslims with the pastured camels noticed buzzards circling and rushed to find their men. The killers were still there on horseback. One of the Mus-lims said they should run and tell Mohammed. The other man said he could not leave his dearest friend’s body and pulled his sword. He was quickly cut down. The other Muslim surrendered.
I650 The enemy cut off the Muslim’s forelock (a humiliation for an Arab) and set him free due to complicated tribal relations between him and the killers’ tribe. He rode off, and later, on the trail back to Medina, he fell in with two Arabs of a tribe related to the ones who had killed his friends. They sat and talked, and then the two men napped. The Muslim killed both of them. There was a problem, however, in that the clan they belonged to had a special treaty with Mohammed.
I650 The fighter went back to Medina and gave a full report to Mohammed. It was a very bad day for Mohammed. Sixty-nine of his best men killed, and now he owed blood money for the killing of two men of a clan with which he had an alliance.
Mohammed and the Unbelievers
Mohammed’s Last Year
CHAPTER 24
THE FAREWELL PILGRIMAGE
I968 Ten years after entering Medina, Mohammed made what was to be his last pil-grimage to Mecca, where he made his farewell address. He told the Muslims that usury was abolished; Allah would judge them and their works; all the blood shed be-fore Islam was to be left unavenged; and the lunar calendar was the sacred calendar and was not to be adjusted with respect to the solar calendar.
I969 He also told them men had rights over their wives and women had rights over their husbands. The wives were never to commit adultery or act in a sexual manner toward others. If they did, they were to be put in separate rooms and beaten lightly. If they refrained from what was forbidden, they had the right to food and clothing. Men were to lay injunctions on women lightly for they were prisoners of men and had no control over their persons.
M473 He said to feed and clothe the slaves well.
I969 He said every Muslim was a Muslim’s brother and to take from a brother only what he willingly gave.
I970 Then Mohammed led the Muslims through the rituals of the
pilgrimage.
THE FINAL STATE OF CHRISTIANS AND JEWS
M453 When Mohammed first was preaching, his religion was Arabian. Then during the last phase in Mecca, he made Allah the same as Jehovah and introduced Jewish elements into his faith. When Mohammed moved to Medina, he argued with the Jews when they denied his status as a prophet in the line of the Jews. He then annihilated the Jews and said no more about his Jewish roots. In his last statement regarding them, Jews and Christians became perpetual second-class citizens, dhimmis:
9:29 Make war on those who have received the Scriptures [Jews and Christians] but do not believe in Allah or in the Last Day. They do not forbid what Allah and His Messenger have forbidden. The Christians and Jews do not follow the religion of truth until they submit and pay the poll tax [jizya] and they are humiliated.
MISSIONS TO WORLD LEADERS
T1561 Mohammed sent letters to the leaders of the countries immediately sur-rounding Arabia demanding submission to Islam. The leader of Egypt thought enough of the invitation to send Mohammed four slave girls. One of these girls was especially attractive to Mohammed, and she was a Christian. Her name was Mary and, as the reader will remember, she bore him a son.
T1566 The letter was received well by the Christian leader in Rome. He said he knew from the sacred texts that Mohammed was a prophet sent by god and that Christians had been expecting him. He would follow Mohammed except that doing so would get him into political trouble with his Roman superiors. So he sent Mohammed’s ambassadors to a Christian bishop instead.
T1567 The bishop also said Mohammed was the one prophesied in the Christian texts and was even mentioned by name. But in the end no one took any action.
T1569 The letter from Mohammed demanding submission to Islam was also sent to the Ethiopian Christian king. The king replied that Mohammed was the one prophe-sied in the Christian texts and was the prophet of the only god. He sent his son and sixty Ethiopians by boat to Mohammed, but the boat sank.
T1572 When the letter was delivered to the king of the Persians, he tore it up. Mo-hammed said his kingdom was torn up at that moment.
A SUMMARY OF MOHAMMED’S ARMED EVENTS
I973 In a nine-year period, Mohammed personally attended twenty-seven raids. There were thirty-eight other battles and expeditions. This was a total of sixty-five armed events, not including assassinations and executions, for an average of one every seven weeks over a period of nine years.
M19,4294 When the Messenger of Allah appointed anyone as leader of an army or detachment, he would especially exhort him to fear Allah and to be good to the Muslims who were with him.
He would say: Fight in the name of Allah and in the way of Allah. Fight against those who disbelieve in Allah. Make a holy war, do not embezzle the spoils; do not break your pledge; do not mutilate the dead bodies; and do not kill the children.
When you meet your enemies who are polytheists, invite them to three courses of action. If they respond to any one of these, you also accept it and withhold yourself from doing them any harm. Invite them to accept Islam; if they respond to you, accept it from them and desist from fighting against them. Then invite them to migrate from their lands to the land of Islam and inform them that, if they do so, they shall have all the privileges and obliga-tions of the Muslims. If they refuse to migrate, tell them that they will have the status of Bedouin Muslims and will be subjected to the Commands of Allah like other Muslims, but they will not get any share from the spoils of war except when they actually fight with the Muslims against the disbelievers.
If they refuse to accept Islam, demand from them the jizya [the tax of submission]. If they agree to pay, accept it from them and hold off your hands. If they refuse to pay the tax, seek Allah’s help and fight them. When you lay siege to a fort and the besieged appeal to you for protection in the name of Allah and His Prophet, do not accord to them the guarantee of Allah and His Prophet, but accord to them your own guarantee and the guarantee of your companions for it is a lesser sin that the security given by you or your companions be disregarded than that the security granted in the name of Al-lah and His Prophet be violated.
When you besiege a fort and the besieged want you to let them out in ac-cordance with Allah’s Command, do not let them come out in accordance with His Command, but do so at your own command for you do not know whether or not you will be able to carry out Allah’s behest with regard to them.
NIGHT RAID
B4,52,73 Allah’s Apostle said, “Know that Paradise is under the shades of swords.”
I974 Mohammed sent Ghalib on a night cavalry raid on an Arab tribe. Near the village, he and his men captured one of the tribe’s leaders who said he was now a Muslim. He was told that, if he was a Muslim, then one night tied up would do him no harm. They bound him and left him guarded by a black man, who was ordered to kill him if he tried to alert the rest of the tribe.
B4,52,256 As-Sab Bin Jaththama said, “The Prophet passed by me at a place called Al-Abwa or Waddan and was asked whether it was permissible to at-tack the pagan warriors at night with the probability of exposing their women and children to danger.”
The Prophet replied, “The women and children are from pagans.” I also heard the Prophet saying, “The institution of Hima [reserved pasture land] is invalid except for Allah and His Apostle.”
I974 The cavalry got to the tribal area at night. One of them went to scout and lay down on a hill overlooking the village. A villager saw a dark shape on the hill and thought the scout might be a dog. He shot the “shape” twice with arrows, but the scout did not move; so the man figured the shape was not something that was alive.
I974 When the tribe had herded in their cattle, milked them, and gone to bed, they were attacked by the jihadists who cried out, “Slay, slay.” Some of the tribe were killed, and their cattle were driven off. The cries of the injured attracted the attention of the other tribe members, and the Muslims fled with the cattle. As they were pur-sued, the thieves went down through a dry gulch, but soon thereafter a flood came down the gulch and prevented pursuit by the injured tribe. The Muslims took the stolen cattle to Mohammed.
THE RAID AGAINST THE JUDHAM
I976 Mohammed sent an envoy to a Byzantine chief. On the way home, the envoy was raided and lost all his goods to the tribe of Judham. The envoy appealed to a neighboring tribe who were under treaty with Mohammed. They attacked the Jud-ham and recovered the stolen goods.
B4,52,196 Mohammed said, “I have been directed to fight the kafirs until every one of them admits, ‘There is only one god and that is Allah.’ Whoever says, ‘There is only one god and that is Allah,’ his body and possessions will be protected by me except for violations of Islamic law, in which case his fate is with Allah, to be punished or forgiven as He sees fit.”
I977 When the envoy returned to Mohammed and told the story, Mohammed sent out Zayd with armed men for vengeance against the thieves. The men attacked what they thought was the enemy clan, killing five men and stealing one hundred women and children as well as their cattle.
I978 When the chief of the clan found out what had happened, he saddled his camel and took a treaty to Mohammed. The Muslim army had attacked the wrong clan; this clan had a treaty with Mohammed. So Mohammed had Ali go out and meet the vic-torious armed band, and they returned the women, children, and cattle to the clan. The clan forgave them the five dead.
ZAYD’S RAID
B4,52,259 Allah’s Apostle sent us on a mission and said, “If you find so-and-so and so-and-so, burn both of them with fire.”
When we intended to depart, Allah’s Apostle said, “I have ordered you to burn so-and-so and so-and-so, and it is none but Allah Who punishes with fire, so, if you find them, just kill them.”
I980 The same commander, Zayd, was attacked by a tribe and, besides losing the fight, was personally wounded. While healing from his wounds, he swore not to have sex until he had avenged his pride. So when he was healed he set out to settle the score. This time he was more successful and triumphed over the enemy. One of the leader’s wives was an old woman; her legs were tied to two camels, and she was torn apart. Her daughter was taken back to Medina as a pleasure slave for one of Mo-hammed’s men, who in turn gave her to another man. They produced a son who grew up to become a leading legal scholar.
T1559 Another woman had the misfortune to be the fairest of the
Arabs. She became the slave of Salama, who brought her back to Medina. Moham-med said, “Salama, how excellent was the father who begot you! Give me the woman.” Salama replied, “Messenger of Allah, I have not yet stripped her clothing. She is yours.” Mohammed sent her to Mecca as a slave to trade for some captured Muslims.
ANOTHER KILLING OF JEWS
B4,52,176 Allah’s Apostle said, “Muslims will fight with the Jews till some of them will hide behind stones. The stones will betray them saying, ‘O Abdul-lah [slave of Allah]! There is a Jew hiding behind me; so kill him.’ ”
I981 One of the Jews of Khaybar was trying to work with another Arab tribe to re-sist the jihad of Islam. Word got back to Mohammed. This was before Khaybar was conquered by Mohammed, and it took some strategy to kill the man. Mohammed sent an agent with several other Muslims who went to the Jew as friends. They treated him well and said Mohammed wished to give him an appointment and honor him.
I981 The Muslims and a company of Jews left for Medina but, about six miles out-side Khaybar, the Jew they were trying to assassinate got suspicious and started to turn back. One of the Arabs rushed him with a sword and cut off his leg. The Jew re-turned the blow with a stick he had in his hand and wounded the attacker in the head. The other Muslims fell upon the other Jews and killed them, except for one who managed to escape.
I981 When they got back to Mohammed, he spit on the head wound and the wound did not fester or cause any pain.
ANOTHER ENEMY OF ALLAH KILLED
I982 Another Arab leader was trying to get men together to resist the onslaught of Mohammed. So Mohammed chose one of his best men to assassinate him. The as-sassin asked Mohammed how he would recognize the leader. Mohammed said, “He looks like Satan. When you see him you will shudder.”
I982 The assassin put his sword on and headed to the town where the leader was supposed to be. He came upon a man with several women. He felt a shudder and ad-vanced toward the man while repeating prayers. The leader asked him who he was. The assassin said, “An Arab who has heard of you and the gathering of force to op-pose Mohammed.” The leader said he was indeed the man. The assassin walked with him a short distance and then killed him with his sword and fled with the women.
I982 The assassin returned to Mohammed. Mohammed looked at him and said, “The aim is accomplished.” The assassin replied, “I have killed him, O Apostle.” He replied, “You are right.” Then Mohammed took him into the house and gave him a stick and told him to keep it by him. When the assassin went into Medina, people asked him about the stick but he didn’t know what it meant. So he went back to Mo-hammed and asked about the meaning of the stick. Mohammed told him, “It is a sign between you and me on the day of resurrection. There are a few men who will be car-rying sticks then.”
I982 So the assassin fastened it to his sword and carried it every day. When he was buried, it was put into the grave with him.
THE RAID OF THE DOWRY
I989 A Muslim agreed to marry a woman and pay a high dowry price. He went to Mohammed for help with the dowry and told him the price. Mohammed said, “If you could just pick up money from the ground you could not have offered a higher price.”
I990 A few days later there was news of a man who was daring to oppose Moham-med. The man was about a day’s ride away. So the husband-to-be was put in charge of a small raiding party to see about the man and the degree of his threat. Moham-med gave them a very old and weak camel and the men set off.
I990 They arrived at the village of the suspected Arab at about sunset. The bride-groom went down to one end of the village, and his men went to the other. When the men heard, “Allah Akbar,” they were to charge.
I990 A shepherd from the village had gone out earlier and not returned, so the vil-lagers became worried. The chief took his sword and went out to look for the shep-herd. His companions begged him not to go out alone, but he was not afraid and went out.
I990 When the chief came upon him, the Muslim shot him through the heart with an arrow and he died without a word. The Muslim cut off his head and charged into the camp yelling, “Allah Akbar,” and his soldiers did the same. Everyone in the camp fled. The Muslims drove off the entire herd of camels and sheep. When the leader took the livestock and the head back to Mohammed, he was given thirteen camels. The price of the camels paid the dowry and he was married.
T1609 There were four women captured as slaves, and one was very beautiful. When Mohammed heard about her he said, “Give her to me.” He then gave her to a jihadist as a favor.
ORDERS FOR A RAID
I992 Abdullah was to be a leader of a raid and presented himself for orders. He was wearing a black turban, and Mohammed had him take it off and showed him how to wear it so that a small amount of the cloth hung down in the back. Mohammed said, “That is neater and better.” He then gave Abdullah the banner for the troops and said, “Take the banner. Fight everyone in the way of Allah (jihad) and kill those who disbelieve in Allah. Do not cheat about the spoils of war. Do not mutilate or kill chil-dren. This is Allah’s law and my practice.”
THE DEATH OF A POETESS
I996 There was a poetess who wrote a poem against Islam. Mohammed said, “Who will rid me of Marwan’s daughter?” One of his followers heard him and on that very night he went to the woman’s home to kill her.
M239 The assassin, a blind man, was able to do the work in the dark as the woman slept. Her babe lay on her breast while her other children slept in the room. The stealthy assassin removed the child and drove the knife into her with such force that he pinned her to the bed.
I996 In the morning he went to Mohammed and told him. Mohammed said, “You have helped Allah and his apostle.” When asked about the consequences, Mohammed said, “Two goats won’t butt their heads together over this.”
M239 Mohammed turned to the people in the mosque and said, “If you wish to see a man who has assisted Allah and his prophet, look here.” Omar cried, “What, the blind Omeir!” “No,” said Mohammed, “call him Omeir the Seeing.”
I996 The mother, Marwan, had five sons and the assassin went to the sons and said, “I killed Bint Marwan, O sons. Withstand me if you can; don’t keep me waiting.” Is-lam became powerful that day, and many became Muslims when they saw the power of Islam.
MOHAMMED’S DEATH
I1000 One night Aisha complained of a headache, but Mohammed also had a head-ache and he said, “No, Aisha, O my head. Would it distress you if you were to die before me so that I might wrap you in your shroud and pray over you?” Aisha said, “I think that, if you did that, after you returned to the house you would simply spend the night with one of your other wives.” But the pain became worse and he took his final illness in the house of Aisha.
I1006 Mohammed was weakened and in a great deal of pain. Later he died with his head in Aisha’s lap.
T1834 His final words were, “There should not be two religions in Arabia” ( i.e., no Jews, no Christians).
Mohammed had established the ideal Islamic pattern of religious tolerance. Islam was to be dominant. All other religions had to submit to Islam.
T1831 Mohammed was buried beneath his bed. The bed was removed and a grave was dug where the bed had stood.
I1017 Abu Bakr was elected caliph to rule over Islam after Mohammed’s death.
This marks the end of Ishaq’s Sirat Rasul Allah, translated by A. Guillaume as The Life of Mohammed.
Mohammed and the Unbelivers
Jihad—War Against All
CHAPTER 11
In Mecca, Mohammed had divided the community into followers of Islam and followers of the native Arabic religions. He adopted all the classical Jewish stories to prove his prophecy and spoke well of the Jews. But there were few Jews living there, and no one argued with him.
Upon coming to Medina, where half the residents were Jews, Mohammed divided the community into thirds: Islam, the Jews and their allies, and those who practiced the native Arabic religions. He made a sharp division between Islam and Christianity as well.
I415 Mohammed then prepared for war as commanded by Allah. He would fight his enemies, those who were not Muslims. This was thirteen years after he started preaching, about one to two years after leaving Mecca and going to Medina.
3:151 Soon shall We cast terror into the hearts of the kafirs, for that they joined companions with Allah, for which He had sent no authority: Their abode will be the Fire: And evil is the home of the wrongdoers!
THE FIRST RAID
I416 At age 53, Mohammed sent forth his fighters to Waddan in search of the Quraysh. They returned without fighting.
THE EXPEDITION OF UBAYDA
I416 Mohammed sent out Ubayda on an expedition with sixty to eighty riders, and they encountered a large number of Quraysh. No fighting took place, but Islam shot the first arrow. It was shot by Saed.
The Arabs had a tradition of war poetry. This poem was written in that tradition:
They (the Quraysh) howled like bitches driven back to their lairs.
If they follow the religion of their fathers
Allah’s punishment on them will not tarry.
A valiant band will descend upon them
And leave their women without husbands. —Abu Bakr
HAMZA’S EXPEDITION
I419 Mohammed sent Hamza out with thirty riders, and they met three hundred riders from Mecca. They separated without a fight.
THE RAID ON BUWAT
I421 Mohammed sent men out looking for Quraysh. No contact was made.
THE RAID ON AL-USHAYRA
I421 This time Mohammed led the raid. They left Medina looking for Quraysh but made no contact.
THE RAID OF SAED
I423 Saed set out with eight men on a raid but made no contact with the enemy, the Quraysh.
THE RAID ON SAFAWAN
I423 After Mohammed came back from his raid, one of the Quraysh raided Medina and stole some camels. Mohammed and some men set out to catch him but made no contact.
Until now, armed men had been sent out to kill and take the spoils of war and take prisoners but without success. After seven attempts, Islam was finally able to destroy the enemies of Mohammed and Allah.
JIHAD—THE FIRST KILLING
I423 Mohammed sent Abdullah out with eight men. He gave him a letter and asked him not to read it for two days. Abdullah agreed. The letter told him where to go and wait for the Quraysh. While camping, two of his men lost their camel and stayed be-hind to look for it while the rest of the men went on.
I424 A Quraysh caravan loaded with leather and raisins came upon the band of Muslims. When the Quraysh saw them they were scared because they had slept not very far away. But one of the Muslims had a shaved head, which was a mark of a re-ligious pilgrim, so the Quraysh felt better. They were safe. The native religions had sacred months in which violence was forbidden to all. This was a sacred month, and they were unarmed.
I425 The Muslims took council. They were faced with a dilemma: if they attacked the caravan now, they would be killing in a sacred month. Luckily, the sacred month ended that day and the next day there would be no taboo about killing. But there was another problem: by nightfall they would be in the sacred area of Mecca. In the sanc-tified area, there could never be any killing. They hesitated and talked about what to do. They decided to kill as many as possible and take their goods before the next day.
I425 Islam drew first blood against the Quraysh of Mecca. They attacked the un-armed men. Amr, the first man to be killed by jihad, was shot by an arrow. One man escaped, and they captured two others. The Muslims took the enemies’ camels with their goods and headed back to Medina and Mohammed. On the way they talked about how Mohammed would get one fifth of the stolen goods.
I425 When they got back, Mohammed said he had not ordered them to attack in the sacred month. He detained the caravan and the two prisoners and refused to do anything with them or the goods. The prisoners said, “Mohammed has violated the sacred month, shed blood therein, stolen goods, and taken prisoners.”
But the Koran said:
2:217 When they ask you about fighting in the holy month, say: Fighting at this time is a serious offense, but it is worse in Allah’s eyes to deny others the path to Him, to disbelieve in Him, and to drive His worshippers out of the Sacred Mosque. Idolatry is a greater sin than murder. They will not stop fighting you until you turn away from your religion. But any of you who renounce your faith and die a kafir will have your works count for nothing in this world and the world to come. These people will be prisoners of the Fire, where they will live forever.
I426 According to Mohammed, to resist the doctrine of Islam and persuade Mus-lims to drop their faith was worse than killing. Before Islam, the rule of justice in Arabia was a killing for a killing, but now to resist Islam was worse than murder. Those who argued against Islam and resisted Islam could be killed as a sacred act. So the murder and theft were sanctified. The spoils of war were distributed and a ransom was set for the prisoners. The men who had killed and stolen were now concerned about whether they would get their share of the spoils. So once again the Koran spoke:
2:218 Those who believe and those who have fled their countries and have fought for Allah’s cause [jihad] may hope for His mercy; Allah is forgiving and merciful.
I426 As Muslims who had been exiled and fought they were blessed by Allah. They received their spoils of war and Mohammed took his 20 percent.
B4,53,351 Allah’s Apostle said, “The spoils of war have been made legal for me.”
Another war poem:
You [Quraysh] count war in the holy month a grave matter
But graver is your opposition to Mohammed and your unbelief.
Though you defame us for killing Amr
Our lances drank Amr’s blood.
We lit the flame of war. —Abu Bakr
Mohammed and the Unbelievers
The Jews And Hypocrites
CHAPTER 9
I351 After a few months the leaders of the Jews could see what lay ahead and began to speak against Mohammed. They were joined by some of the Arabs who respected the ancient religions that Mohammed condemned. Just as in Mecca, he disparaged others’ religious customs, cursed their gods, and said their ancestors would burn in Hell. Most of the Arabs who disapproved of Mohammed’s tactics were silent in pub-lic because of Mohammed’s increasing political power. Those Muslims who were public Muslims but private critics were called hypocrites.
I351 The rabbis began to ask difficult questions of Mohammed, who would not tol-erate any resistance to his word. Doubts and questions about his doctrine were doubts about Allah, and doubts about Allah were evil. However, two of the Jewish Arabs joined Mohammed as Muslims. They believed him when he said he was the prophesied Jewish prophet come to fulfill the Torah.
I351 Some of the Arabs pretended to convert in order to save their lives. Actually, they preferred the Jews to Mohammed and worked against Mohammed when they could.
THE HYPOCRITES
I351 Before Mohammed arrived, the Arabs who practiced the ancient Arabic relig-ions were content within their religion and tolerant of other religions. Many Arabs became Muslims because they were pressured to do so. They chose Islam to save their lives. But in secret they were hypocrites who allied themselves with the Jews because they thought Mohammed was deluded.
According to the Koran:
2:8 And some of the people [the Jews] say, “We believe in Allah and the Day,” al-though they do not really believe.
I365 The hypocrites were also cursed by Allah and would be damned:
2:9 They wish to deceive Allah and His believers, but they fool no one but them-selves although they do not know it. Their hearts are diseased, and Allah has in-creased their suffering. They will suffer an excruciating doom because of their lies.
I365 The Koran gives an analogy about the hypocrites:
2:16 It is these who have bought error at the price of guidance. Their purchase is profitless, and they have lost the right direction. They are like the ones who lit a fire, and when it shed its light all around them, Allah took it away and left them in total darkness where they were unable to see. Deaf, dumb and blind, they will never turn back to the right path.
I355 One of the Medinans became a Muslim and later began to doubt the truth of Mohammed and said, “If this man is right, we are worse than donkeys.” His best friend had converted and told Mohammed of this friend’s doubts. Mohammed be-lieved allegiance to Islam came before family, nation, or friend. When he confronted the man about his remarks and doubts, the man denied them.
The Koran’s comments:
9:74 They swear by Allah that they said nothing wrong, yet they spoke blasphemy, and some Muslims became kafirs. They planned what they could not carry out [a plan against Mohammed], and only disapproved of it because Allah and His Mes-senger had enriched them by His bounty [the resistance to Mohammed decreased when the money from the spoils of war came into the Medinan economy]. If they repent, it will be better for them, but if they fall back into their sin, Allah will afflict them with a painful doom in this world and the next. On earth they will have nei-ther friend nor protector.
I356 Ironically, the friend who reported the doubts to Mohammed later turned against Mohammed, killed two Muslims during battle, and fled to Mecca. Moham-med ordered him killed, but he escaped. Again the Koran:
3:86 How will Allah guide the people who fall into disbelief after having been believ-ers and having acknowledged the messenger as true and after having received clear signs? Allah does not guide those that do evil. As for these, they will receive Allah’s curse, as well as the curse of His angels and of all mankind, and they will live under it forever. Their punishment will not be lightened nor will they be forgiven except for those who repent and change their ways. Allah is forgiving and merciful.
I357 Mohammed used to say one of the hypocrites had the same face as Satan. The man used to sit and listen to Mohammed and then take what he said back to the hypocrites. He said of Mohammed, “Mohammed
is all ears. If anyone tells him anything he will believe it.” The Koran speaks of him:
9:61 There are some of them who injure the Messenger and say, “He is only a hearer.” Say: He is a hearer of good for you. He believes in Allah and believes in the faithful. He is a mercy to those of you who believe, but those who injure the Mes-senger of Allah will suffer a painful doom.
I357 Later at the Battle of Uhud, one of the hypocrites said that if it were left to him they would not be there. The Koran’s response:
3:154 Then, after the trouble Allah sent down upon you, He sent down calmness to wash over some of you. Some were overtaken by sleep, and others lay awake, stirred by their own passions, ignorantly thinking unjust thoughts about Allah. And they ask, “What do we gain by this affair?” Say: Truly the affair is entirely in Allah’s hands. They hide in their hearts that which they do not want to tell you. They speak out saying, “If we had any say in this affair then none of us would have been killed here.” Say: If you had stayed at home, those of you who were destined to be killed would have died regardless. This has taken place so that Allah might test your faith and see what is in your hearts.
I357 The same man later said at another tough battle, “Mohammed has said we will take the treasures of Persia and Rome, but it is not safe for us to go to the privy.” Again the Koran:
33:12 There were the believers tried, and they were severely shaken. The hypocrites and the diseased of heart said, “Allah and His Messenger promised us only to de-ceive us.”
I358 One of the hypocrites excused his criticism by saying he was only talking and jesting. No criticism was too small to go unnoticed. The Koran:
2:14 And when they meet with the faithful they say, “We believe too.” But when they are alone with their fellow devils [Jews and Christians] they say, “Really, we are with you. We were only mocking them.”
I365 Mohammed said the hypocrites changed their faces depending upon whom they were with. When they were with Muslims, they believed. But when they were with the evil ones (the Jews) they said they were loyal to them. It was the Jews who ordered them to deny the truth and contradict Mohammed.
2:15 Allah will throw their mockery back on them and leave them to wander alone in their blindness.
THE JEWS
When Mohammed came to Medina about half the population was Jewish. There were three tribes of Jews and two tribes of Arabs. Almost none of the Jews had He-brew names and had adopted Arabic culture. At the same time, many of the Arabs’ religious practices contained elements of Judaism. Before Mohammed arrived, there had been bad blood and killing among the tribes. The last battle had been fought by the two Arab tribes, but all three of the Jewish tribes had joined the battle with their particular Arab allies. In addition to that tension between the two Arab tribes, there was tension between the Jews and the Arabs.
The Jews were farmers and tradesmen and lived in their own quarters, which were somewhat fortified. In general, they were better educated and more prosperous than the Arabs were. It was because of these quarrelsome tribal relationships that Mo-hammed was invited to Medina. But the result was further polarization, not unity. The new split was between Islam and the Arabs and Jews who resisted Islam.
THE REAL TORAH IS IN THE KORAN
A running commentary of the Sira claims that the Jews and Christians corrupted their sacred texts in order to conceal the fact that the coming of Mohammed was prophesied in their scriptures. The stories in the Koran are similar to those of the Jewish scriptures, but they have different plots and make different points. According to Islam the difference is that the real Torah (the first five books of the Jewish scrip-tures: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) is in the Koran. Mo-hammed said the scriptures of the Jews were changed to hide the fact that Islam is the true religion. According to him, the Jewish scriptures are corrupt; the Koran is perfect and contains the real stories.
I364 But the Jews did not believe Mohammed was a prophet. In turn, the Muslims believed the Jews were in error and cursed by Allah and would never find guidance and meaning. Although the rabbis said publicly that Mohammed was a liar and would receive Hell-fire as a punishment, they really knew the Koran was right and their scriptures were falsified to avoid the truth of Mohammed. They were just too proud to admit it, and by denying his prophethood they conspired against Moham-med and Islam. Since Allah determined all that happens, it was Allah who had caused them to not believe Mohammed, and they would burn in Hell for it.
2:6 As for the kafirs, whether you warn them or not, they will not believe. Their hearts and ears are sealed up by Allah, and their eyes are covered as well. There will be a dreadful doom awaiting them.
I367 The Koran and Mohammed taught that Mohammed was the final prophet. His coming had been foretold in the original Torah. Allah had blessed the Jews and protected them, but now they refused to believe the final and ideal prophet. The Jews were not ignorant but deceitful, and they knew the truth of Mohammed and hid the truth with lies.
2:40 Children of Israel! Remember the favor I have given you, and keep your cove-nant with Me. I will keep My covenant with you. Fear My power. Believe in what I reveal [the Koran], which confirms your Scriptures, and do not be the first to disbe-lieve it. Do not part with My revelations for a petty price. Fear Me alone. Do not mix up the truth with lies or knowingly hide the truth.
I367 The Koran repeated the many favors that Allah had done for the Jews—they were the chosen people delivered from slavery under the pharaoh and given the sa-cred Torah but all they had ever done was sin. They had been forgiven many times by Allah, and still they were as hard as rocks and refused to believe Mohammed. They had perverted the Torah after understanding it; the Jews had gone so far as to confuse others about Mohammed. They refused to recognize Mohammed as the true prophet, and they contradicted what they knew to be the truth found in the real Torah, not the corrupted one they produced instead.
2:74 Then your hearts were hardened like rocks, or even worse, for there are some rocks from which rivers gush forth; some are split in two and water comes out of them, and others fall down from fear of Allah. Allah is not at all unaware of your actions.
2:75 Can you believers then hope that the Jews will believe you even though they heard the Word of Allah and purposefully altered it after they understood its meaning?
I369 The Jews’ sins were so great that Allah had changed them into apes and pigs. Still they would not learn and refused to admit that Mohammed was their prophet. They knew fully well the truth and hid it to confuse others. Even when they told Mo-hammed they believed, they concealed their resistance.
2:65 And you know those among you who sinned on the Sabbath. We said to them, “You will be transformed into despised apes.”
5:59 Say: O, people of the Book [Jews and Christians], do you not reject us only be-cause we believe in Allah, in what He has sent down to us, in what He has sent be-fore us, and because most of you are wrongdoers? Say: Can I tell you of retribution worse than this that awaits them with Allah? It is for those who incurred the curse of Allah and His anger; those whom He changed into apes [Jews] and swine [Chris-tians]; those who worship evil are in a worse place, and have gone far astray from the right path.
5:61 When they presented themselves to you they said, “We believe,” but they came as kafirs to you, and as kafirs they left. Allah well knew what they concealed.
I370 The Jews had understood the truth and then changed it to avoid admitting Mohammed was right. They had done the same thing to Moses; when some of the Jews told Moses they wished to hear Allah as he did, he had them purify themselves and he took them to Mt. Sinai. Allah did speak so that they also might hear what he commanded and prohibited. But later Moses found that they changed the Word of Allah. So the Jews were only doing to Mohammed what they had done to Moses, changing the Torah .
2:75 Can you believers then hope that the Jews will believe you even though they heard the Word of Allah and purposefully altered it after they understood its meaning?
2:79 Wretchedness will come to those who write their own scriptures and then claim, “This is from Allah,” so that they can sell it for a pitiful price. They will have a mournful fate because of what they have written and for what they have earned by their actions.
MOHAMMED IS THE REAL JEW
I381 Christians and Jews argued with Mohammed that if he wished to be saved from Hell he would have to convert. Mohammed answered that he was the one who truly followed the religion of Abraham and he was the true Jew with the true Torah.
2:135 They say, “Become a Christian or a Jew, and you will be rightly guided to sal-vation.” Say: No! We follow the religion of Abraham, the upright, and he was no idol worshipper. Say: We believe in Allah and in that which has been revealed to us, and to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the tribes, and in that given to Moses and Jesus and all other messengers by our Lord.
I383 Mohammed entered a Jewish school and called the Jews to Islam. One asked him, “What is your religion, Mohammed?”
“The religion of Abraham.”
“But Abraham was a Jew.”
“Then let the Torah judge between us.” He meant the Torah of the Koran.
3:66 Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but a righteous man, a Muslim, not an idol worshipper. Doubtless the ones who follow Abraham are the closest to him, along with this messenger and the believers. Allah is protector of the faithful. Some of the People of the Book try to lead you astray, but they only mislead themselves, although they may not realize it.
I397 Three Jews came to Mohammed and said, “Do you not allege that you follow the religion of Abraham and believe in the Torah, which we have, and testify that it is the truth from Allah?” He replied, “Certainly, but you have sinned and broken the covenant contained therein and concealed what you were ordered to make plain to men. I disassociate myself from your sin.” The concealment was the part of the Torah that prophesied the coming of Ahmed (Mohammed).
5:71 Say: O, people of the Book [Jews and Christians], you have no ground to stand on until you observe the Law and the Gospel and that which was sent down to you from your Lord. The Book [the Koran] that was sent down from your Lord will certainly increase the rebellion and unbelief of many of them, but do not be grieved for the kafirs.
I399 Jews came to Mohammed and said, “Is it true that what you have brought to us is from Allah? For our part we cannot see that it is arranged as the Torah is.” He replied, “You know quite well that it is from Allah. You will find it written in the To-rah which you have.” By this he meant the real Torah that they concealed.
B3,48,850 Ibn Abbas said, “O Muslims? How do you ask the people of the Scriptures, though the Koran which was revealed to His Prophet is the most recent information from Allah and you recite it, the Book that has not been distorted? Allah has revealed to you that the people of the scriptures have changed with their own hands what was revealed to them and they have said (as regards to their corrupted Scriptures): This is from Allah, in order to get some worldly benefit thereby.” Ibn Abbas added: “Isn’t the knowledge re-vealed to you sufficient to prevent you from asking them? By Allah I have never seen any one of them asking Muslims about what has been revealed to you.”
AN OMINOUS CHANGE
I381 While living in Mecca, Mohammed spoke well of the Jews, who were few in number. In Medina there were many Jews and his relations with them were tense. Until now Mohammed had led prayer in the direction of Jerusalem. Now he changed the kiblah, the direction of prayer, to the Kabah in Mecca. Some of the Jews asked why he changed it since he had said he followed the religion of Abraham. The Koran:
2:142 The foolish ones will say, “What makes them turn from the kiblah?” Say, Both the east and the west belong to Allah. He will guide whom He likes to the right path.
I382 Mohammed summoned the Jews to follow Islam. He made it sound attractive and warned them of Allah’s punishment and vengeance. The Jews said they would follow the religion of their fathers. The Koran:
2:170 When it is said to them, “Follow what Allah has revealed,” they say, “No, we follow the practices of our ancestors.” What? Even though their ancestors were ig-norant and without guidance?
B4,56,662 The Prophet said, “You will follow the wrong ways of your predecessors so completely and literally that if they should go into the hole of a mastigure, you too will go there.”
We said, “O Allah’s Apostle! Do you mean the Jews and the Christians?” He replied, “Whom else?”
B4,56,668 Allah’s Apostle said, “The Jews and the Christians do not dye their gray hair, so you shall do the opposite of what they do (i.e., they were to dye their gray hair and beards).”
B4,55,609 When the Prophet came to Medina, he found the Jews fasting on the day of Ashura. They used to say: “This is a great day on which Allah saved Moses and drowned the folk of Pharaoh. Moses observed the fast on this day as a sign of gratitude to Allah.”
The Prophet said, “I am closer to Moses than they.” So he observed the fast on that day and ordered the Muslims to fast on it.
Mohammed and the Unbelievers
The First Dhimmis
CHAPTER 21
[Ed.: A dhimmi is a kafir who is a second-class citizen in an Islamic country. There are many legal restrictions on dhimmis, such as not being able to testify against a Muslim. In addition, they must pay a special tax, jizya, which can be as high as 50 percent. The wealth of Islam came from the tax on the dhimmis.]
KHAYBAR
I756 After the treaty of Hudaybiya, Mohammed stayed in Medina for about two months before he collected his army and marched to Khaybar, a community of wealthy Jewish farmers who lived in a village of separate forts about a hundred miles from Medina.
B4,52,41 I asked Allah’s Apostle, “O Allah’s Apostle! What is the best deed?”
He replied, “To offer the prayers at their early stated fixed times.”
I asked, “What is next in goodness?”
He replied, “To be good and dutiful to your parents.”
I further asked, “What is next in goodness?”
He replied, “To participate in jihad in Allah’s Cause.”
I did not ask Allah’s Apostle anymore, and if I had asked him more, he would have told me more.
I757 When Mohammed raided a people, he waited until the morning. If he heard the call to prayer, which meant the people were Muslims, he would not attack but if there was no Muslim call to prayer he attacked. When he rode up with his army, workers were coming out to work in the fields. When they saw Mohammed and his army, they fled. Mohammed said, “Allah Akbar! Khaybar is destroyed. When we ar-rive in a people’s square, it is a bad morning for those who have been warned.”
M19,4437 The Messenger of Allah raided Khaybar. One morning we offered prayers in the darkness of early dawn near Khaybar. Then the Messenger of Allah mounted his horse. Abu Talha mounted his and I mounted behind Abu Talha on the same horse. The Prophet of Allah rode through the streets of Khaybar and I rode so close to him that my knee touched the thigh of the Prophet of Allah. The wrapper got aside from his thigh, and I could see its whiteness .
When he entered the town, he said, “Allah Akbar! Khaybar shall face de-struction. When we descend in the city-square of a people, it is a bad day for them who have been warned and have not taken heed.” He said these words thrice.
The people of the town had just come out from their houses to go about their jobs. They said, in surprise, “Mohammed has come.”
We captured Khaybar by force.
I757 When the Ghatafan Arabs heard that Mohammed was going to attack Khay-bar, they thought to confront him there. However, as they left they heard that their homes might be attacked and so they returned for security of their own property.
M31,5917 Suhail reported on the authority of Abu Huraira that Allah’s Messenger said on the Day of Khaybar, “I shall certainly give this standard in the hand of one who loves Allah and his Messenger and Allah will grant vic-tory at his hand.”
Umar said, “Never did I cherish for leadership but on that day. I came before him with the hope that I may be called for this.”
But Allah’s Messenger called Ali, and he conferred this honor upon him and said, “Proceed on and do not look about until Allah grants you victory.”
Ali went on a bit and then halted and did not look about and then said in a loud voice, “Allah’s Messenger, on what issue should I fight with the peo-ple?”
Thereupon the Prophet said, “Fight with them until they bear testimony to the fact that there is no god but Allah and Mohammed is his Messenger, and when they do that, their blood and their riches are inviolable from your hands but what is justified by law and their reckoning is with Allah.”
M19,4450 When we reached Khaybar, its king named Marhab advanced, brandishing his sword and chanting:
“Khaybar knows that I am Marhab,“A fully armed, and well tried warrior“When the war comes spreading its flames.” My uncle, Amir, came out to combat with him, saying:“Khaybar certainly knows that I am Amir,“A fully armed veteran who plunges into battles.”
They exchanged blows. Marhab’s sword struck the shield of Amir who bent forward to attack his opponent from below, but his sword recoiled upon him and cut the main artery in his forearm which caused his death.
Salama said, “I came out and heard some people among the Companions of the Holy Prophet saying: Amir’s deed has gone waste; he has killed him-self.”
So I [narrated by Ibn Salama’s father] came to the Holy Prophet weeping and I said, “Messenger of Allah. Amir’s deed has gone waste.”
The Messenger said, “Who passed this remark?”
I said, “Some of your Companions.”
Mohammed said, “He who has passed that remark has told a lie; for Amir there is a double reward.” Then he sent me to Ali, who had sore eyes, and said, “I will give the banner to a man who loves Allah and His Messenger or whom Allah and His Messenger love.”
So I went to Ali and brought him, and he had sore eyes, and I took him to the Messenger of Allah, who applied his saliva to his eyes and he got well. The Messenger of Allah gave him the banner and Ali went to meet Marhab in single combat.
Marhab advanced chanting:
“Khaybar knows certainly that I am Marhab,“A fully armed and well tried valorous warrior hero“When war comes spreading its flames.”
Ali chanted in reply:
“I am the one whose mother named him Haidar, “I am like a lion of the forest with a terror-striking countenance. “I give my opponents the measure of sandara in exchange for sa’ [i.e., return their attack with one that is much more fierce].”
Ali struck at the head of Mirhab and killed him, so the capture of Khaybar was due to him.
I758 Mohammed seized the forts one at a time. Among the captives was a beautiful Jewess named Safiyah. Mohammed took her for his sexual pleasure. One of his men had first chosen her for his own slave of pleasure, but Mohammed traded him two of her cousins for Safiyah. Mohammed always got first choice of the spoils of war and the women.
I759 On the occasion of Khaybar, Mohammed put forth new orders about forcing sex with captive women. If the woman was pregnant she was not to be used for sex until after the birth of the child. Nor were any women to be used for sex who were unclean with regard to Muslim laws about menstruation.
I759 One of the Muslim jihadists came to Mohammed to complain that he had re-ceived no spoils of war. Mohammed explained that there was none left to give him but held out hope that the next fort would be the richest in food. Sure enough, the next day Allah captured a rich Jewish fort and the man got his treasure.
B2,14,68 During the night Mohammed said the Fajr prayer, mounted his beast, and said, “God is great! Khaybar is destroyed! When we ride against a nation that has ignored our warning, they are in for the most terrible morn-ing.”
As the people emerged from the city and saw our forces, they screamed the warning, “Mohammed and his army are here.” Mohammed crushed them, killing their warriors and seizing their women and children. Dihya Al-Kalbi took Safiyah, although she was later given to Mohammed, who married her and gave Safiyah her freedom from slavery as a wedding present.
I764 Mohammed knew there was a large treasure hidden somewhere in Khaybar so he brought forth the Jew he thought knew the most about it and questioned him. This Jew was Kinana, the husband of Safiyah, Mohammed’s soon-to-be new bride. Kinana denied any knowledge. But another Jew said he had seen the man around one of the old ruins. The search was made, and a great deal of the treasure was found but not all of it. Mohammed told one of his men, “Torture the Jew until you extract what he has.” So the Jew was staked on the ground and a small fire built on his chest to get him to talk. The man was nearly dead but would not talk, so Mohammed had him released and taken to one of his men whose brother had been killed in the fight, and the Muslim got the pleasure of cutting the tortured Jew’s head off.
I760 When one fort had fallen, Bilal, Mohammed’s freed black slave, brought Safi-yah and another beautiful woman to Mohammed. He brought them past the dead and dying Jewish defenders, including their husbands. The woman with Safiyah be-gan to shriek and pour dust on her head. Mohammed said to Bilal, “Take this she-devil away from me.” Then he said to Bilal, “Had you no compassion, Bilal, when you brought the two women past their dead husbands?”
I764 The Jews of Khaybar were Mohammed’s first dhimmis. After the best of the goods were taken from the Jews, Mohammed left them to work the land. His men knew nothing about farming and the Jews were skilled at it. So the Jews worked the land and gave Mohammed half their profits.
M10,3762 Allah’s Messenger returned the date-palms of Khaybar and its land to the Jews of Khaybar on the condition that they should work with their own wealth, seeds, and implements and give half of the yield to Allah’s Messenger.
I765 When the killing and capturing were done, the men rested. The next night a Jewess named Zaynab prepared the evening meal of roast lamb for Mohammed. She asked what was Mohammed’s favorite joint and learned that it was the shoulder. She poisoned that joint and served the lamb to Mohammed and his companions. He tasted the meat and spit it out. It did not taste right, but another of his men wolfed down some of the lamb, fell ill, and died. Mohammed called her up and asked for an explanation. She told him he had killed her kin. If he was a king he would die from the poison and if he was a prophet it would not harm him, as he would know.
B4,53,394 When Khaybar was conquered, a roasted poisoned sheep was presented to the Prophet as a gift by the Jews. The Prophet ordered, “Let all the Jews who have been here be assembled before me.” The Jews were col-lected and the Prophet said to them, “I am going to ask you a question. Will you tell the truth?”
They said, “Yes.”The Prophet asked, “Who is your father?”
They replied, “So-and-so.” He said, “You have told a lie; your father is so-and-so.”
They said, “You are right.” He said, “Will you now tell me the truth, if I ask you about something?” They replied, “Yes, O Mohammed; and if we should tell a lie, you can re-alize our lie as you have done regarding our father.” On that he asked, “Who are the people of the Hell Fire?”
They said, “We shall remain in the Hell Fire for a short period, and after that you will replace us.” The Prophet said, “You may be cursed and humiliated in it! By Allah, we shall never replace you in it.”
Then he asked, “Will you now tell me the truth if I ask you a question?” They said, “Yes, O Mohammed.”
He asked, “Have you poisoned this sheep?” They said, “Yes.”
He asked, “What made you do so?” They said, “We wanted to know if you were a liar in which case we would get rid of you, and if you are a prophet then the poison would not harm you.”
I765 On the way back to Medina, one of Mohammed’s slaves was removing Mo-hammed’s saddle when a stray arrow hit and killed him. The Muslims congratulated him for dying a martyr. Mohammed said the slave would burn in Hell, since the cloak he was wearing had come from the spoils of war and he had stolen it. It was Allah’s pleasure for the Muslims to take property in jihad, but if a Muslim stole any of the spoils before it was divided he would burn in Hell.
B8,78,698 We fought alongside Mohammed at the Battle of Khaybar, and although we did not receive any gold or silver as spoils of war, we did get miscellaneous property like clothes. However, a tribesman of the Bani Ad-Dubaib, Zaid, gave Mohammed a slave named Midam.
In the Al-Qura valley, Midam was killed by an arrow shot by an unknown person. Some people said, “Congratulations to Midam for getting to Para-dise.”
Mohammed cried, “No, Midam is not going to Paradise. By Allah, the sheet that he stole from the Khaybar spoils of war is burning over him in Hell.” When the people heard what Mohammed had to say, one man re-turned a couple of leather straps that he had taken from the spoils of war. Mohammed said to him, “One strap of fire or two straps of fire for you.”
I766 On the way back Mohammed had one of the Muslim women prepare Safi-yah (she was the Jewess he had picked for his pleasure) for her wedding night with Mohammed. That night one of his men marched around his tent for the whole night with his sword. The next morning Mohammed asked what he was doing and the man replied, “I was afraid for you because of the woman. You have killed her father, her husband, and her kin, so I was afraid for you on her ac-count.” Mohammed blessed him.
I770 While Mohammed was besieging Khaybar, a shepherd who worked for a Jew came over and asked him about Islam. The shepherd decided to become a Muslim and then asked Mohammed what to do about the sheep. Mohammed told him to send them back to their owner. The shepherd joined the raiders and was killed that day without ever praying a single prayer. Still, he went straight to heaven as a martyr. Mohammed said the shepherd now had two houris for wives in heaven. Mohammed said that, when a martyr is slain, his new wives pet him and wipe the dust from his face and say, “May Allah put dust on the face of the man who put dust on your face and slay him who slew you.”
B8,77,603 We witnessed along with Allah’s Apostle the Khaybar campaign. Allah’s Apostle told his companions about a man who claimed to be a Mus-lim, “This man is from the people of the Fire [Zoroastrian].”
When the battle started, the man fought very bravely and received a great number of wounds and got crippled. On that, a man from among the com-panions of the Prophet came and said, “O Allah’s Apostle! Do you know what the man you described as of the people of the Fire has done? He has fought very bravely for Allah’s Cause, and he has received many wounds.”
The Prophet said, “But he is indeed one of the people of the Fire.” Some of the Muslims were about to have some doubt about that state-ment. So while the man was in that state, the pain caused by the wounds troubled him so much that he put his hand into his quiver and took out an arrow and committed suicide with it. Off went some men from among the Muslims to Allah’s Apostle and said, “O Allah’s Apostle! Allah has made your statement true. So-and-so has committed suicide.”
Allah’s Apostle said, “O Bilal! Get up and announce in public: None will enter Paradise but a believer, and Allah may support Islam with a wicked man.”
B9,83,29 We went out with the Prophet to Khaybar. A man from the com-panions said, “O Amir! Let us hear some of your camel-driving songs.” So he sang some of them [a lyric in harmony with the camels’ walk].
The Prophet said, “Who is the driver of these camels?”
They said, “Amir.”
The Prophet said, “May Allah bestow His Mercy on him!”
The people said, “O Allah’s Apostle! Would that you let us enjoy his com-pany longer!” Then Amir was killed the following morning. The people said, “The good deeds of Amir are lost as he has killed himself.”
I returned at the time while they were talking about that. I went to the Prophet and said, “O Allah’s Prophet! Let my father be sacrificed for you! The people claim that Amir’s good deeds are lost.”
The Prophet said, “Whoever says so is a liar, for Amir will have a double reward as he exerted himself to obey Allah and fought in Allah’s Cause. No other way of killing would have granted him greater reward.”
I770 A Meccan named Al Hajjaj became a Muslim and took part in the capture of Khaybar. After the conquest he asked Mohammed’s permission to go to Mecca and finish up his affairs and collect his debts. He then asked Mohammed if he could tell lies to get his money. The prophet of Allah said, “Tell them.” So he set out for Mecca. When he got there the Meccans were asking for news from Khaybar. They did not know that the man had converted and so trusted him. He told them the Muslims had lost and that Mohammed had been captured. He said the Jews of Khaybar were going to bring Mohammed to Mecca so they could kill him.
I771 The Meccans were elated. He then asked them to help him collect his debts so he could return to Khaybar and profit from the confusion there. In good spirits they helped him collect the debts. He had been gone three days when they found out the truth of Khaybar and the fact that he was now a Muslim.
THE DIVISION OF THE TREASURE OF THE JEWS
I774 There was a total of eighteen hundred people who divided up the wealth taken from the Jews of Khaybar. A cavalry man got three shares; a foot soldier got one share. Mohammed appointed eighteen chiefs to divide the loot. Mohammed got his fifth before it was distributed.
B5,59,537 On the day of Khaybar, Allah’s Apostle divided the spoils of war of Khaybar with the ratio of two shares for the horse and one share for the foot soldier.
FADAK
I777 The Jews of Fadak panicked when they saw what Mohammed did to Khaybar. They would be next, so they surrendered to Mohammed without a fight. Since there was no battle Mohammed got 100 percent of their goods, and they worked the land and gave half to Mohammed each year. They became dhimmis like those of Khaybar.
COLLECTING THE TAXES OF KHAYBAR
I778 The first tax collector of Khaybar was killed after one year and a new man was appointed. The new tax collector was killed as well. He was found in a pool of water with a broken neck, and there was no proof of who killed him. His relatives went to Mohammed and asked for blood money and revenge. When Mohammed asked them who should pay they did not know. He then asked if they would accept fifty oaths from the Jews that they were innocent. They said, “The oath of Jews is worthless. Their infidelity is so great that they are habitual liars.” Mohammed resolved the issue by paying the blood money himself to the relatives.
I779 When Mohammed lay dying, his last words were that neither Jew nor Chris-tian should remain in Arabia. When Umar became caliph he expelled all Jews and Christians, including those of Khaybar.
Mohammed and the Unbelievers
Continued Jihad
CHAPTER 14
THE RAID ON THE TRIBE OF B. SULAYM
I540 Seven days after Mohammed returned from Badr he led an armed force in a raid against a tribe allied with the Quraysh. The fighting band waited for three days at a watering hole but found no opportunity for killing and returned to Medina.
THE RAID OF THE PARCHED GRAIN
I543 Abu Sufyan wanted revenge on Mohammed for his defeat at Badr, and he swore that he would not have sex until he got it. He headed out with two hundred men to fulfil his vow. After a short day’s ride, he stopped near Medina at night and got information about the Muslims. The next morning his army burned some new date palm trees, killed two Muslims, and left. The Muslims gave hot pursuit. Along the trail they found some sacks of parched grain that Abu Sufyan had abandoned to allow a fast escape. They were not able to engage Abu Sufyan and finally returned to Medina.
THE RAID OF DHU AMARR
T1365 After the raid of parched grain, Mohammed stayed in Medina about a month. Then he raided Najd. There he stayed for a month but never engaged any of the Quraysh or their allies, so he returned
to Medina.
THE RAID OF BAHRAN
T1365 Mohammed and his men then set out for Bahran to seek the Quraysh. Two months later they returned to Medina without any contact with the enemies of Allah.
THE AFFAIR OF THE JEWS OF QAYNUQA
I545 There were three tribes of Jews in Medina. The Banu Qaynuqa were gold-smiths and lived in a stronghold. Mohammed said they had broken the treaty signed when Mohammed came to Medina. How they did this is unclear.
I545 Mohammed assembled the Jews in their market and said, “O Jews, be careful that Allah does not bring vengeance upon you the way he did to the Quraysh. Become Muslims. You know that I am the prophet that was sent to you. You will find that in your scriptures.”
I545 They replied, “O Mohammed, you seem to think that we are your people. Don’t fool yourself. You may have killed a few merchants of the Quraysh, but we are men of war and real men.”
I545 The response of the Koran:
3:12 Say to the kafirs, “Soon you will be defeated and thrown into Hell, a wretched home!” Truly, there has been a sign for you in the two armies which met in battle. One army fought for Allah’s cause, and the other army was a group of kafirs, and the kafirs saw with their own eyes that their enemy was twice its actual size. Allah gives help to whom He pleases. Certainly there is a lesson to be learned in this for those who recognize it.
I546 A little later, Mohammed besieged the Jewish tribe of Banu Qaynuqa in their quarters. Neither of the other two Jewish tribes came to their support. Finally, the Jews surrendered and expected to be slaughtered after their capture.
I546 An Arab ally, bound to them by a client relationship, approached Mohammed and said, “O Mohammed, deal kindly with my clients.” Mohammed ignored him. The ally repeated the request and Mohammed still ignored him. The ally grabbed Mohammed by the robe and enraged Mohammed, who said, “Let me go!” The ally said, “No, you must deal kindly with my clients. They have protected me and now you would kill them all? I fear these changes.” The response by the Koran:
5:57 O, you who believe, do not take those who have received the Scriptures [Jews and Christians] before you, who have scoffed and jested at your religion, or who are kafirs for your friends. Fear Allah if you are true believers. When you call to prayer, they make it a mockery and a joke. This is because they are a people who do not un-derstand.
Mohammed released the Jews he had captured but took all of their wealth and goods. He drove the first of the three tribes of Jews from Medina with only the clothes on their backs. Two tribes were left.
THE RAID OF AL QARADA
I547 Mohammed’s victory at Badr and ongoing jihad caused the Quraysh to travel by a different route to Syria. They hired a new guide to take them over the new route. Mohammed had information about their route and sent a party to raid them. They were carrying a great deal of silver when the caravan stopped at a watering hole. The Muslims surprised them and the Quraysh managed to escape, but Mohammed’s men stole all the caravan’s goods, including the silver. The stolen goods were delivered to Mohammed in Medina.
THE ASSASSINATION OF AL ASHRAF, THE JEW
I548 When Al Ashraf, a Jew of Medina, heard that two of his friends of the Quraysh had been killed at Badr, he said that being in the grave was better than being on earth with Mohammed. To oppose Mohammed was to be “the enemy of Allah.” So the “enemy of Allah” composed some poems bewailing the loss of his friends and at-tacking Islam.
I551 When Mohammed heard Al Ashraf’s criticism of his politics, he said, “Who will rid me of Al Ashraf?” A Muslim said, “I will kill him for you.” Days later Mo-hammed found out that his assassin was not doing anything, including eating or drinking. Mohammed summoned him and asked what was going on. The man re-plied that he had taken on a task that was too difficult for him to do. Mohammed said that it was a duty he should try to perform. The assassin said, “O Apostle of Allah, I will have to tell a lie.” The prophet said, “Say what you like; you are free in the matter.”
I551 The stage was set. The assassin arranged to go with a friend to the Jew, Al Ashraf, and befriend him and discuss poetry. After friendly talk and a few recitations, he told Al Ashraf of his dissatisfaction with Islam. This talk bonded him to the Jew as a friend. Then he said that he wished to borrow money to buy food and wanted to put up weapons as a security for the loan. Also, he had some friends who were dissat-isfied with Mohammed who would come as well, to get a loan and use weapons as a security. The goal was for a small group of men to be able to approach the Jew with weapons and not arouse suspicion.
I552 The scene was set and the group of assassins met with Mohammed, and he led them to the fortified home that Al Ashraf lived in. Just before they got there, Mo-hammed left them with the blessing, “Go in Allah’s name. O Allah, help them.”
I552 They knocked on Al Ashraf’s door and called out his name. He had already gone to bed when he heard them. His wife asked who was calling at that time of night. Al Ashraf told her the Muslim’s name. She asked that he not go because there was bad blood between the Jews and Mohammed, and it was dangerous. He assured her that these men were no problem and went downstairs. There were the assassins with their weapons for the security of the loan and big friendly smiles. They stood outside the door and chatted. It was a beautiful night, and they invited Al Ashraf to take a short walk with them. He accepted.
I552 As they walked and talked, the lead assassin put his arm around Al Ashraf and, as he drew his arm back, ran his hand through Al Ashraf’s hair. He smelled his hand and remarked upon the beautiful scent in the Jew’s hair. In order to smell it better he reached up to the Jew’s hair again and grabbed the hair and jerked Al Ashraf’s head down. “Kill the enemy of Allah,” he shouted. The assassins hacked at the Jew with their swords but in the confusion only cut him and one of their own. Then the lead assassin reached for his knife, plunged it into the Jew’s belly, and ripped downwards to his groin. Al Ashraf screamed so loudly everyone woke up. The assassins ran back to Mohammed.
I552 Their wounded friend lagged behind, so they carried him back with them. When they got back to Mohammed, he was praying. They told him they had killed the enemy of Allah and their attack had terrorized all the Jews. There was no Jew in Medina who was not afraid.
B5,59,369 Allah’s Apostle said, “Who is willing to kill Kab Bin Al-Ashraf who has hurt Allah and His Apostle?”
Thereupon Maslama got up saying, “O Allah’s Apostle! Would you like that I kill him?”
The Prophet said, “Yes.”
Maslama said, “Then allow me to say a false thing to deceive Kab.”
The Prophet said, “You may say it.”
Then Maslama went to Kab and said, “Mohammed demands money from us and I need to borrow money.”
On that, Kab said, “By Allah, you will get tired of him!”
Maslama said, “Now as we have followed him, we do not want to leave him unless and until we see how his end is going to be. Now we want you to lend us a camel load of food.”
Kab said, “Yes, I will lend you the food, but you should mortgage some-thing to me.”
Maslama and his companion said, “What do you want?”
Kab replied, “Mortgage your women to me.”
They said, “How can we mortgage our women to you and you are the most handsome of the Arabs?”
Kab said, “Then mortgage your sons to me.”
They said, “How can we mortgage our sons to you? Later they would be abused by the people’s saying that so-and-so has been mortgaged for a camel’s load of food. That would cause us great disgrace, but we will mort-gage our arms to you.”
Maslama and his companion promised Kab that Maslama would return to him. He came to Kab at night along with Kab’s foster brother, Abu Na’ila. Kab invited them to come into his fort, and then he went down to them.
His wife asked him, “Where are you going at this time?”
Kab replied, “None but Maslama and my foster brother Abu Na’ila has come.”
His wife said, “I hear a voice as if dropping blood is from him.”
Kab said, “A generous man should respond to a call at night even if in-vited to be killed.” Maslama went with the two men.
So Maslama went in together with two men and said to them, “When Kab comes, I will touch his hair and smell it and, when you see that I have got hold of his head, strip him. I will let you smell his head.”
Kab Bin Al-Ashraf came down to them wrapped in his clothes and smell-ing of perfume. Maslama said, “I have never smelt a better scent than this.”
Kab replied, “I have the best.”
Maslama requested Kab, “Will you allow me to smell your head?”
Kab said, “Yes.”
Maslama smelt it and made his companion smell it as well. Then he re-quested Kab again, “Will you let me smell your head?” Kab said, “Yes.”
When Maslama got a strong hold of him, he said to his companion, “Get at him!”
So they killed him and went to the Prophet and informed him. Abu Rafi was killed after Kab Bin Al-Ashraf.
KILL ANY JEW THAT FALLS INTO YOUR POWER
I554 The Apostle of Allah said, “Kill any Jew who falls into your power.” Hearing this, Muhayyisa fell upon a Jewish merchant who was a business associate and killed him. Muhayyisa’s brother was not a Muslim and asked how Muhayyisa could kill a man who had been his friend and partner in many business deals. The Muslim said that if Mohammed had asked him to kill his brother he would have done it immedi-ately. His brother said, “You mean that if Mohammed said to cut off my head you would do it?” “Yes,” was the reply. The older brother then said, “By Allah, any relig-ion that brings you to this is marvelous.” And he decided then and there to become a Muslim.
A NEW WIFE
M250 Mohammed took a third wife, Hafsa, the daughter of Omar. She was a widow of a Muslim and about 20 years old. Now he was married to daughters of two of his most faithful followers, Abu Bakr and Omar.
None of the marriages of Medina would ever produce children who lived to be adults. Only his first marriage in Mecca produced a child who would give him grand-children who lived to adulthood. Fatima, his daughter, would continue the lineage of Mohammed.
Mohammed and the Unbelievers
Cleaning Up the Details
CHAPTER 23
KHALID’S ERROR
I833 Mohammed sent out troops to the surrounding areas of Mecca to invite the Arabs to submit to Islam. Among those he sent was Khalid.
I834 When the members of the tribe of Jadhima saw Khalid and his troops, they grabbed their weapons. Khalid said, “Lay down your arms for everyone has accepted Islam.” But one of the Jadhima tribe called out, “Woe unto you, oh Jadhima. That is Khalid. If you lay down your arms, he will bind you and cut off your heads.” But his tribal brothers insisted that would not happen and laid down their weapons.
I834 As soon as they disarmed, Khalid had them bound and put them to the sword.
I837 One of the bound men asked one of Khalid’s men to lead him over to the women. He did so and the prisoner spoke a love poem to a woman. She went back with him as he was beheaded and wept and kissed him until they killed her as well.
I834 When this news reached Mohammed, he said, “O Allah, I am innocent before you of what Khalid has done.”
I835 Mohammed sent Ali with blood money to pay for the deaths. He gave each relative the blood money and still had money left over. Ali asked if any more com-pensation was due and they said no. So he gave them the balance of what he had. He returned to Mohammed and told him what he had done. Mohammed said he had done well, and then he turned to the Kabah and raised his arms so that the whiteness of his armpits showed and repeated three times, “O Allah, I am innocent before you of what Khalid did.”
KHALID’S DESTRUCTION OF THE NATIVE SHRINE
I840 Mohammed sent Khalid to an ancient temple near Mecca that was used by several tribes for worship. When Khalid got there he destroyed it completely.
THE BATTLE OF HUNAIN
I840 When Mohammed took Mecca, surrounding Arab tribes saw that he would be king of Arabia if he was not opposed. The Hawazin Arabs decided to oppose Mo-hammed under the leadership of Malik, who called for the advice of Durayd, a very old and experienced soldier. Durayd liked the location that Malik had chosen for the combat, but he wondered why he was hearing the sound of children and bleating sheep. Malik told him he was going to place the women, children, and livestock be-hind his men so they would not flee during battle. Durayd groaned and said, “You shepherd, do you think sheep will stop a man from running? If all goes well, nothing will help you except the sword and lance. If it goes badly, you will be disgraced with both family and property.”
I841 Durayd said the allies were too few and were not from tribes of great warriors. He also criticized the battle array and Malik’s strategy. But Malik was proud and re-fused the advice of an old man.
I842 Mohammed sent a spy to gather intelligence about the Arabs. When he got the information, he set about for jihad. He first borrowed armor and lances from a wealthy Meccan and then marched out with twelve thousand men.
B4,52,52 The Prophet said, “A single endeavor in Allah’s Cause in the after-noon and in the forenoon is better than the world and whatever is in it.”
I845 When Mohammed’s army descended into an area broad enough for combat they found the enemy prepared and waiting to attack.
M5,2309 We conquered Mecca, and then we went on an expedition to Hu-nain. The polytheists came, forming themselves into the best rows that I have seen. They first formed the rows of cavalry, then those of infantry, and then those of women behind them. Then there were formed the rows of sheep and goats and then of other animals. We were also people large in number, and our number had reached six thousand. And on one side Khalid Bin Walid was in charge of the cavalry. And our horses at once turned back from our rear. And we could hardly hold our own when our horses were exposed, and the Bedouins and the people whom we knew took to their heels.
I845 The Muslim troops broke and ran. Mohammed stood in his stirrups and called out, “Where are you going? Come to me, the Apostle of Allah.” Most of the men continued to retreat except his battle-hardened core troops who regrouped around him. About a hundred men led the charge to turn the tide. They were steadfast. Mo-hammed looked at the carnage and said, “Now the oven is hot!”
M19,4385 I [Abbas] was in the company of the Messenger of Allah on the Day of Hunain. I and Abu Sufyan stuck to the Messenger of Allah, and we did not separate from him. And the Messenger of Allah was riding on his white mule.
When the Muslims had an encounter with the disbelievers, the Muslims fled, falling back, but the Messenger of Allah began to spur his mule toward the disbelievers. I was holding the bridle of the mule of the Messenger of Al-lah, checking it from going very fast, and Abu Sufyan was holding the stirrup of the mule of the Messenger of Allah, who said, “Abbas, call out to the peo-ple of Al-Samura.”
I called out at the top of my voice: “Where are the people of Samura?” And by God, when they heard my voice, they came back to us as cows come back to their calves and said, “We are present, we are present!” They began to fight the infidels.
Then there was a call to the Ansar. Those who called out to them shouted, “O Ansar [the Helpers]!”
And the Messenger of Allah who was riding on his mule looked at their fight with his neck stretched forward and he said, “This is the time when the fight is raging hot.” Then the Messenger of Allah took some pebbles and threw them in the face of the infidels. Then he said, “By the Lord of Mohammed, the infidels are defeated.”
I went round and saw that the battle was in the same condition in which I had seen it. By Allah, it remained in the same condition until he threw the pebbles. I continued to watch until I found that their force had been spent out and they began to retreat.
I847 One of the Muslim women was near Mohammed and said about those who were retreating, “Kill those who flee just as you kill those who are attacking us.”
I848 Two men were fighting, and a Muslim went over to help. In one sword stroke he cut off the hand of the nonbeliever, who then grabbed the Muslim by the throat and nearly killed him by strangulation. One more sword stroke finished him off. Af-ter the battle he went back and found that the man he had killed had already been stripped of his armor and weapons. No spoils of war. So he went to Mohammed and complained of his loss. Another Muslim admitted that he had taken the wealth of the man and that the man who killed him should be paid with his share of the distributed wealth. Abu Bakr, Mohammed’s first in command, said, “No, by Allah, he shall not be paid from the general distribution. Are you going to make one of the lions of Allah who fought for Islam ask for shares? No, return the spoils to the one who killed him!” Mohammed confirmed this judgment, and the fighter took the spoils of war and sold it and bought his first real estate, a small palm-grove. But that was a small yield; one Muslim took the spoils of twenty men.
B4,53,370 During the Battle of Hunain, I [Abu Qatada] was in the company of Mohammed. After the battle was joined, the Muslim army had begun to retreat when I saw a kafir attacking a Muslim. I attacked him from behind and dealt him a mortal blow, though he almost killed me before he expired.
Following Umar, I asked him: “Why are the people fleeing?”
“It is the will of Allah,” he said.
When the soldiers returned, Mohammed said, “Anyone who can prove that he killed an enemy soldier may have the dead man’s possessions.”
I rose and asked: “Who will be my witness?”
Mohammed repeated, “Anyone who can prove that he killed an enemy soldier may have the dead man’s possessions.”
I stood up again and asked: “Who will be my witness?”
Mohammed announced for a third time his call for claims and for the third time I asked for a witness.
Mohammed asked me, “Abu Qatada, what do you have to say?”
After I told him the whole story, a man got up and said, “Mohammed, he is telling the truth. I have the dead man’s possessions. Please compensate the man for me.”
Abu Bakr spoke up, “No, by Allah, Mohammed will not give you the spoils of war won by a warrior that fights on behalf of Allah and Moham-med.”
Mohammed said, “Abu Bakr is correct.”
So, Mohammed gave me the man’s armor, which I sold. I bought a gar-den with the money I received for the armor. It was the first property I ac-quired after my conversion to Islam.
I856 One of those captured was a woman, and they handled her roughly. She told them she was Mohammed’s foster sister. They brought her in front of Mohammed and he asked for proof. She reminded him of a bite he had given her when she carried him. He remembered this and treated her well. She decided to return to her tribe and not become a Muslim. Mohammed gave her two slaves, one male and one female.
M19,4453 On the Day of Hunain, Umm Sulaim took out a dagger she had in her possession. Abiu Talha saw her and said, “Messenger of Allah, this is Umm Sulaim. She is holding a dagger.”
The Messenger of Allah asked her, “Why are you holding this
dagger?”
She said, “I took it up so that I may tear open the belly of a polytheist who comes near me.”
The Messenger of Allah began to smile at these words.
She said, “Messenger of Allah, kill all those people—other than us—whom you have declared to be free on the day of the Conquest of Mecca. They embraced Islam because they were defeated at your hands and as such their Islam is not dependable.”
The Messenger of Allah said, “Umm Sulaim, God is sufficient against the mischief of the polytheists and He will be kind to us so you need not carry this dagger.”
I859 A poem of the battle:
Crushing the heads of the nonbelievers
Now choking them with bare hands
Now splitting their skulls with a sharp sword
Obedience to Allah and Mohammed.
We conquered with his flag and commission
A glorious life and authority that will not cease.
The day we trod down the kafirs
We did not turn from the Prophet’s orders.
In battle people only heard
The exhortations and smashing of skulls
By swords that severed the necks of warriors at a blow.
We left the slain cut to pieces.
‘Tis Allah we please, not man. —Bin Mirdas
THE CAPTURE OF AL TAIF
I870 When Mohammed had finished at Hunain, he set out for Al Taif.
I872 On the way, he passed a walled house. Mohammed called out that, if the man did not come out of his house, the Muslims would tear down his wall. He would not come out and the Muslims tore down his wall.
B4,52,72 Mohammed told us that Allah revealed to him that “any holy war-rior killed will go to Paradise.”
Umar asked the prophet, “Is it true that Muslims killed in battle will go to Paradise, and kafirs who are killed in battle will go to Hell?”
Mohammed said, “Yes.”
I872 They reached Al Taif and camped near its walls. Some Muslims were killed when arrows from the besieged city hit them, so they withdrew their camp. They fought for days just exchanging arrows with the city. Then the Muslims stormed the wall using a testudo (a roofed moveable structure) to avoid the arrows, but the de-fenders dropped hot iron on the roof of the testudo and set it ablaze. As the Muslims tried to escape, the defenders shot them; so Mohammed cut down their vineyards.
I874 Mohammed took stock of the situation. As he was doing so, one of the Muslim women came over and asked him if she could have the jewelry of one or two women of the tribe under siege. It so happened these women were well known for the fine-ness of their jewelry. Mohammed told her she might not get to wear the jewelry be-cause he’d had a foreboding dream. They broke camp.
I874 One of the Muslims was very irritated. He had come for the sole purpose of getting a slave girl. This particular Arab tribe was noted for its intelligence and the Muslim wanted her to breed smart sons for him.
I877 On the way back from the siege of Al Taif, Mohammed stopped where many of the prisoners and livestock of the Hunain battle were kept. The elders of the de-feated tribe reminded him that some of their tribe had been his foster kin. Moham-med asked them whether they wanted their livestock or their wives and children re-turned. Naturally, they said they wanted their families back.
I878 When the noon prayers were over, Mohammed asked if those who had the spoils of the Hunain battle would be willing to return the women and children. His oldest converts, the Helpers and the Immigrants, said yes. But those from a recently allied tribe said no. So Mohammed offered them six camels for each person if they would return them.
I878 From the lot of the women, Mohammed had chosen three as gifts of pleas-ure to his companions. He gave Ali one slave for sex and gave one each to Uthman and Umar too. So Mohammed gave slaves of pleasure to his two sons-in-law and father-in-law. Umar gave his sex slave to his son. It is not recorded if the women were returned to their mothers and fathers.
I878 One of the men had a female captive who was old, and he didn’t want to give her up for six camels. He said she was of high standing in the tribe and was worth more. Another Muslim told him, “Let her go! Her mouth is cold, her breasts are flat, and she cannot conceive. Not only that, her husband will not care. Give her up.” The man gave her up for the six camels, but later he still complained about it. He was told, “Shut up. It is not like you took her as a virgin or even a plump matron.”
I879 One man was a chief whom Mohammed wanted for his influence. Moham-med sent word that he would give him a hundred camels and return his family if he would submit to Islam. The man did so.
I880 After Mohammed had returned the families, the Muslim fighters pressed him hard for the division of the livestock as the spoils of war. As a matter of fact, they pressed him so hard they shoved him against a thorn tree that tore off his mantle. That angered him, but he gave them all they wanted.
I885 All the new Muslims were receiving the spoils of war, but the Helpers had re-ceived nothing and they were angry. So one went and complained and Mohammed had them all gather.
I886 Mohammed praised Allah and then said, “O Helpers, what is this I hear of you? Do you think ill of me in your hearts? Did I not come to you when you were in error? You were poor, and now Allah has made you rich. You had many enemies, and now your hearts are softened.” The Helpers replied, “Yes, you and Allah have been kind and generous.” Then Mohammed said, “Had you wished, you could have said that I came to you when I was discredited and you believed me. I was deserted and you helped me. I was poor and you comforted me. And all of this would have been true. Are you disturbed because I have given good things to others to influence them to be Muslims? Are you not satisfied that others will take livestock away and you will take back the Apostle of Allah? By Allah, if it were not for the Immigrants, I would have become a Helper myself. If all men went in one direction and the Helpers went the other, I would go with the Helpers. May Allah have mercy on the Helpers.”
I886 The men cried until tears ran off their beards. “We are satisfied with our share.” And they left feeling grateful.
M5,2303 When on the Day of Hunain Allah conferred upon His Apostle the riches of the Hawazin without armed encounter, the Messenger of Allah set about distributing to some persons of Quraysh one hundred camels.
Upon this the young people from the Ansar said, “May Allah grant par-don to the Messenger of Allah that he bestowed these camels upon the peo-ple of Quraysh, and he ignored us, whereas our swords are still dripping blood.”
Their statement was conveyed to the Messenger of Allah, and he sent someone to the Ansar and gathered them under a tent of leather. When they had assembled, the Messenger of Allah came to them and said, “What is this news that has reached me from you?”
The wise people of the Ansar said, “Messenger of Allah, so far as the sen-sible among us are concerned they have said nothing, but we have among us persons of immature age. They said, ‘May Allah grant pardon to the Messen-ger of Allah that he gave to the Quraysh and ignored us despite the fact that our swords are besmeared with their blood.’”
Upon this the Messenger of Allah said, “I give at times material gifts to persons who were quite recently in the state of unbelief, so that I may incline them to truth. Don’t you feel delighted that people should go with riches, and you should go back to your homes with the Apostle of Allah? By Allah, that with which you would return is better than that with which they would return.”
They said, “Yes, Messenger of Allah, we are pleased.”
The Holy Prophet said, “You would find marked preference in conferring of the material gifts in future, so you should show patience till you meet Al-lah and His Messenger in Paradise.”
They said, “We would show patience.”
THE AFFAIR OF THE POET
I888 A poet named Kab had satirized Mohammed. His brother wrote to him, saying Mohammed killed those who spoke against him. Those poets who could had escaped from Arabia. However, if Kab apologized and became a Muslim, all would be for-given. Otherwise, he should flee.
I889 Kab wanted to live and remain in Arabia. Other friends also told him he was a dead man if he didn’t leave or convert, so he wrote a poem praising Mohammed and repenting.
I889 Then Kab set out for Medina and went to the mosque and asked which man was Mohammed. Someone pointed him out. Kab went directly to him after prayers and asked, “If Kab, the poet, came to you as a repentant Muslim, would you accept him?” Mohammed said he would. Then Kab said he was that man. Immediately one of the Helpers leapt up and asked permission to behead Kab. Mohammed told the Helpers to leave the man alone, as he was now a Muslim. A Muslim should never kill
another Muslim.
MARY, THE COPTIC SLAVE OF PLEASURE
M425 Mohammed was given two Coptic (Egyptian Christian) slaves. One he gave to another Muslim but he kept Mary, fair of skin with curly hair. He did not move her into the harem but set her up in an apartment in another part of Medina. Mary pro-vided something in sex that none of his wives could—a child, and it was a male child, Abraham. Mohammed doted on him.
M426 The harem was jealous. This non-Arab slave had given Mohammed his best gift. Then, while one of his wives, Hafsa, was away, Mohammed took Mary to her apartment in the harem. Hafsa returned and there was a scene. Mohammed tried to keep it quiet but the harem was incensed: a slave in one of their beds was an outrage and a scandal. The wives banded together, and it was a house of anger and coldness.
M427 Mohammed withdrew and swore he would not see his wives for a month and lived with Mary. Omar and Abu Bakr were appalled as Mohammed, their son-in-law, abandoned their daughters for a slave. Finally, Mohammed relented and said Gabriel had spoken well of Hafsa and he wanted the whole affair to be over.
The Koran:
66:1 Why, O, Messenger, do you forbid yourself that which Allah has made lawful to you? Do you seek to please your wives? [Mohammed told Hafsa he would stop rela-tions with Mary and then did not, but Hafsa was supposed to be quiet about the matter.] Allah is lenient and merciful. Allah has allowed you release from your oaths, and Allah is your master. He is knowing and wise.
66:3 When the Messenger confided a fact to one of his wives, and when she divulged it [Hafsa told Aisha (Mohammed’s favorite wife) about Mary and the harem became embroiled in jealousy], Allah informed Mohammed of this [Mohammed learned of the problem in his harem], and he told her [Hafsa] part of it and withheld part. When Mohammed told her of it, she said, “Who told you this?” He said, “He who is knowing and wise told me.”
66:4 “If you both [Hafsa and Aisha] turn in repentance to Allah, your hearts are al-ready inclined to this, but if you conspire against the Messenger, then know that Allah is his protector, and Gabriel, and every just man among the faithful, and the angels are his helpers besides. Perhaps, if he [Mohammed] divorced you all, Allah would give him better wives than you—Muslims, believers, submissive, devout, penitent, obedient, observant of fasting, widows, and virgins.”
Abraham died about a year later.
THE RAID ON TABUK
I894 Mohammed decided to raid the Byzantines. Normally, he never let his men actually know where he was headed. He would announce a general destination and, after they were on the way, announce the actual place. But this raid was far away and the weather was very hot, so more complicated preparations needed to be made. The men began to prepare but with no enthusiasm due to the heat. Besides, it was time for harvest to begin, and they remembered the last combat with the Byzantines—they lost badly.
B4,52,198 When Mohammed planned an attack, he would use deceit to conceal his objective, the exception being the Battle of Tabuk, which was fought during extremely hot weather. Facing a long trek through the desert before attacking a formidable host, Mohammed told his army their destina-tion and made clear their difficult situation.
I894 When Mohammed asked one of his best men if he wanted to go, the man re-plied, “Would you allow me to stay? You know how much I love women and, when I see the Byzantine women, I don’t know if I will be able to control myself.” So Mo-hammed told him to stay, but the Koran had a comment:
9:49 Some of them say to you, “Allow me to remain at home, and do not expose me to temptation.” Have they not already fallen into temptation? Hell will surround the kafirs.
I895 There was much grumbling about the heat.
9:81 Those who were left behind were delighted at sitting behind Allah’s Messenger. They hated to strive and fight with their riches and their lives for Allah’s cause [ji-had] and said, “Do not go out in the heat.” Say: The Fire of Hell is a fiercer heat. If they would only understand. Let them laugh a little for they will weep much in payment for their deeds.
I896 Mohammed urged those who could to finance the jihad. Those with wealth did so. There were seven poor fighters who came to Mohammed and begged to go, but they had no mounts. Mohammed said he had no mounts and they left crying, but a Muslim gave them an old camel suitable only for carrying water and dates, and they went off with Mohammed.
I896 When Mohammed set off, there were many Muslims who were slow to leave or who came with misgivings. After the first camp, some of them returned to Medina. These were called hypocrites.
9:47 If they had intended to go to war, they would have prepared for war. But Allah was opposed to their marching forth and held them back. It was said, “Sit at home with those who sit.” If they had taken the field with you, they would not have added to your strength but would have
hurried about among you, stirring up dissension. Some of you would have listened to them. Allah knows the evildoers.
I897 Mohammed left his son-in-law, Ali, behind to take care of Mohammed’s fam-ily. After Mohammed was on the trail, some of the Medinans told Ali that Moham-med did not want to take him along because he was a burden and Mohammed didn’t want him around. This angered Ali, so he grabbed his weapons, saddled his camel, and set out to catch Mohammed. When he caught up, Mohammed told him to go back. He said those men were liars, and he needed Ali to care for his family. Ali went back.
I901 As the journey went on, some men dropped out. Mohammed said of them, “Let them be. If there is any good in them, they will rejoin; if not, Allah has rid us of them.”
I902 When they got to Tabuk, the people there paid the poll tax. By paying the per person tax, they gained immunity and Mohammed would not attack and kill them or rob their caravans.
I903 Mohammed sent Khalid to the fort of a Christian ruler. When the ruler and his brother rode out of their fort to inspect their cattle, Khalid killed the brother and captured the ruler. The Christian’s robe was so beautiful that Khalid sent it to Mo-hammed. The Muslims admired it, but Mohammed said he preferred a rag from one of his martyrs. The ruler agreed to pay the poll tax to Islam, and Mohammed re-turned to Medina.
THE PUNISHMENT OF THE THREE
I908 When Mohammed returned to Medina there were many who had chosen not to go on jihad with him. Three drew his attention (the text is not clear exactly why), and he ordered them shunned. No one was to go to their houses or even speak to them. Many of those who stayed behind came to him and apologized, but Moham-med remained silent.
I909 In a small community, public shunning was socially crippling, and the three who were being punished were hurt. After forty days, even their wives were ordered to shun them.
B6,60,199 I heard Kab Bin Malik, who was one of the three who were for-given, saying that he had never remained behind Allah’s Apostle in any battle which he had fought except two—Tabuk and Badr. He added: I decided to tell the truth to Allah’s Apostle in the forenoon, and scarcely did he return from a journey he made,
except in the forenoon, he would go first to the mosque and offer a two-Rakat prayer. The Prophet forbade others to speak to me or to my two companions, but he did not prohibit speaking to any of those who had remained behind excepting us.
So the people avoided speaking to us, and I stayed in that state till I could no longer bear it, and the only thing that worried me was that I might die and the Prophet would not offer the funeral prayer for me, or Allah’s Apostle might die and I would be left in that social status among the people that no-body would speak to me or offer the funeral prayer for me. But Allah re-vealed His Forgiveness for us to the Prophet in the last third of the night while Allah’s Apostle was with Um Salama. Um Salama sympathized with me and helped me in my disaster.
Allah’s Apostle said, “O Um Salama! Kab has been forgiven!”
She said, “Shall I send someone to him to give him the good
tidings?”
He said, “If you did so, the people would not let you sleep the rest of the night.” So when the Prophet had offered the Fajr prayer, he announced Al-lah’s Forgiveness for us. His face used to look as bright as a piece of the full moon whenever he was pleased.
When Allah revealed His Forgiveness for us, we were the three whose case had been deferred while the excuse presented by those who had apologized had been accepted. But when there were mentioned those who had told the Prophet lies and remained behind in the Battle of Tabuk and had given false excuses, they were described with the worst description one may be de-scribed with.
Allah said: “They will present their excuses to you when you return to them. Say: Present no excuses; we shall not believe you. Allah has already informed us of the true state of matters concerning you. Allah and His Apos-tle will observe your actions.”
I913 On the fiftieth day of their shunning Mohammed announced that Allah had sent down forgiveness for the men who had slacked on their duty of jihad to Tabuk. So Mohammed did not chastise them; Allah did.
9:118 Allah also turned in mercy to the three who were left behind. Their guilt caused them to feel that the earth, spacious as it is, constrained them. Their souls became so confined within them that they thought there was no refuge from Allah but in Him. Then He turned to them, in mercy, so that they might repent. Allah is constant and merciful. Believers, fear Allah, and be with those who are truthful.
THAQIF SUBMITS TO ISLAM
I914 One of the men from Thaqif came to Mohammed to submit to Islam. When he went back to Thaqif, he announced his conversion from the top of his house. The men of Thaqif responded by shooting arrows at him and killing him. The natives of Thaqif were growing tired of the persecution and danger in not being a Muslim. As one said, “Our herds are not safe. We cannot go out without being cut off.” So they decided to submit to Islam and gain peace.
I916 They sent a large delegation to Mohammed, which tried to negotiate with Mo-hammed. They wanted to wait three years before destroying their native religious objects, but Mohammed would have none of that. Finally, the best deal to be made was that Mohammed would send someone to destroy all the native religious objects so the members of Thaqif would not have to do the work themselves, as they loved their old religion.
ETERNAL JIHAD
B,52,53 Mohammed said, “Nobody who died and went to Paradise would want to return to life even if he were given the world and all its possessions, the exception being the martyr that recognized the moral superiority of giv-ing one’s life for Allah and who wished to return to life only to give it again.”
Mohammed said, “A single act of jihad in the afternoon or morning is greater than the entire world and everything in it. A place in Paradise, no matter how small, is greater than the entire world and everything in it. If a houri [a virgin of Paradise devoted to perfect sexual satisfaction] came from Paradise and revealed herself to man, she would fill the sky between heaven and earth with bright light and sweet aromas. The veil she wears is greater than the entire earth and everything in it.”
M448 After all the victories some Muslims said the days of fighting were over and even began to sell their arms. Mohammed forbade this, saying, “There shall not cease from the midst of my people a party engaged in fighting for the truth until the Anti-christ appears.” Jihad was therefore the normal state of affairs. Indeed, the Koran prepared the way for this:
9:122 The faithful should not all go out together to fight. If a part of every troop remained behind, they could instruct themselves in their religion and warn their people when they return to them that they should guard against evil.
ABU BAKR LEADS THE PILGRIMAGE
I919 Abu Bakr led the pilgrimage from Medina to Mecca. While they were in Mecca, major changes were made to the treaty of Hudaybiya, per the Koran. The treaty was only good for four more months.
9:1 A declaration of immunity from Allah and His Messenger to the kafirs with whom you have made a treaty: Travel freely in the land for four months, but know that you cannot escape Allah and that those who do not believe will be put to shame by Allah.
9:3 Allah and His Messenger proclaimed to the people on the day of the greater pil-grimage: “Allah and His Messenger are free from any obligations with the kafirs. If you repent to Allah, it will be better for you, but if you turn away, then know that you cannot escape Allah.” Announce a painful punishment to those who do not be-lieve.
I920 After the four-month period, jihad would be declared upon those of the native religions unless they submitted to Islam.
9:5 When the sacred months [by ancient Arab custom there were four months dur-ing which there was to be no violence] are passed, kill the kafirs wherever you find them. Take them as captives, besiege them, and lie in wait for them with every kind of ambush. If they submit to Islam, observe prayer, and pay the poor tax, then let them go their way. Allah is gracious and merciful.
I922 After this date those who practiced the old native religions of Arabia would no longer be able to come to Mecca for pilgrimage.
9:17 It is not for the kafirs to visit or maintain temples of Allah while they witness against their own souls to disbelief. Their work bears no fruit; they will abide in the Fire forever. Only he who believes in Allah and the Last Day should visit the mosques of Allah, observe regular prayer, and practice regular charity, and fear only Allah.
Family, friends, wealth, businesses, and homes all had to be less important than Allah, Mohammed, and jihad.
9:24 Say: If your fathers, and your sons, and your brothers, and your wives, and your kin-folks, and the wealth which you have gained, and the merchandise that you fear you will not sell, and the dwellings in which you delight—if all are dearer to you than Allah and His Messenger and efforts on His Path, then wait until Allah’s com-mand comes to pass. Allah does not guide the impious.
I924 The kafirs were unclean and could not approach the Kabah. The money lost from their pilgrimages would be taken care of by Allah.
9:28 O, believers, only the kafirs are unclean. Do not let them come near the Sacred Temple after this year of theirs. If you fear poverty from the loss of their business [breaking commercial ties with the Meccans], Allah will enrich you from His abun-dance if He pleases. Allah is knowing and wise.
I924 Jihad against the kafirs would result in a poll tax that would compensate for the lost pilgrimage incomes.
9:29 Make war on those who have received the Scriptures [Jews and Christians] but do not believe in Allah or in the Last Day. They do not forbid what Allah and His Messenger have forbidden. The Christians and Jews do not follow the religion of truth until they submit and pay the poll tax [jizya], and they are humiliated.
I924 The Koran then turned to the issue of the raid on the Byzantines at Tabuk. Muslims were required to answer the call to jihad. It was an obligation.
9:38 O, believers, what possessed you that when it was said, “March forth in Allah’s cause [jihad],” you clung heavily to the earth? Do you prefer the life of this world to the next? Little is the comfort of this life compared to the one that is to come. Unless you march forth, He will punish you with a grievous penalty, and He will put an-other in your place. You will not harm Him at all, for Allah has power over every-thing.
I924 If the Byzantine raid had been short and produced easy war spoils, the Mus-lims would have joined readily, but instead they made excuses.
9:42 Had there been a near advantage and a short journey, they would certainly have followed you, but the journey was too long for them. Yet they will swear by Allah saying, “If we only could have, we would surely have gone forth with you.” They would destroy their own souls. Allah knows that they are surely lying.
I924 A Muslim’s duty was not to avoid fighting, either personally or with money.
9:44 Those who believe in Allah and in the Last Day do not ask for exemption from fighting with their wealth and their lives. Allah knows those who fear Him.
I926 Those who tried to avoid jihad were hypocrites, and the prophet was to strug-gle against them. They were bound for Hell.
9:73 O, Prophet, strive hard against the kafirs and the hypocrites, and be firm with them. Hell will be their dwelling place: A wretched journey.
I927 In the past Mohammed had gone to the graves of some of the hypocrites and prayed, but a Muslim was not to pray for a kafir or stand at his grave.
9:84 Never pray over nor stand over the grave of anyone of them who dies because he did not believe in Allah and His Messenger and died in his wickedness.
Those who believed in Allah and the apostle and entered jihad with their wealth and lives would prosper and enter Paradise. This was a promise from Allah.
9:88 The Messenger and those who share his faith strive hard for their faith with their purses and lives. All good things await them. These are the ones who will pros-per. Allah has made ready for them Gardens beneath which the rivers flow, where they will remain forever. This is the supreme felicity.
9:111 Allah has bought from the believers their lives and their wealth, and in return theirs is the Garden of Paradise. They will fight on the path of Allah so they slay and are slain. It is a promise binding on Him in truth through the Law, in the Gospel, and in the Koran, and who is more faithful to His promise than Allah? Rejoice, therefore, in the pledge that you have made, for this will be the great bliss.
I932 Some poetry from this period:
Carrying horsemen accustomed to fighting warriors
And to smiting down brave foes
Never retreating, but always advancing
We came back with their leaders
And with their women and children also divided among the warriors
We inherited their houses when they were gone
And remained there as owners
When the Apostle brought us the truth.
THE DEPUTATIONS
I933 When Mohammed had taken Mecca and Tabuk, deputations began to come from other Arabs. They had been waiting to see how the conflict played out between the Quraysh and Mohammed. When Mohammed was victorious the Arabs came in groups and joined the winner.
110:1 When the help of Allah and the victory arrive, and you see men entering the religion of Allah in ranks, then celebrate the praises of your Lord and pray for His forgiveness, for He is always ready to show mercy.
Ishaq’s biography goes on for some pages about the different tribes who came to submit to Islam. One interesting story that portrays the motives of some who joined is that of a Christian chief.
ADIY, THE CHRISTIAN
I947 No man disliked Mohammed more than Adiy. Seeing Mohammed rise in po-litical power, he made plans to evacuate when Mohammed came with his warriors. Sure enough, the word came that Mohammed was near, and Adiy took his family and left for Syria. In his rush he left behind his niece. She was captured and then released to travel to find her Uncle Adiy. She advised him to join Mohammed, saying, “If he is a prophet, those who join early will have an advantage, and if he is a king you will not be shamed.” So he went to see Mohammed.
I949 When Adiy met Mohammed he was impressed by him although he did not act like a king. Mohammed said, “The poverty of the Muslims might cause you to not want to join Islam, but, by Allah, there will soon be such a flood of wealth that people will not be able to handle it. You think that others have the power, but soon the cas-tles of Babylon will be open to Islam.” So Adiy became a Muslim.
THE KINGS OF HIMYAR
I956 The kings of Himyar wrote to Mohammed that they had submitted to Islam. Mohammed wrote back, “I received your message and am informed of your conver-sion to Islam and your killing kafirs. Allah has guided you. Send one fifth of the spoils of war, and tax the non-
believers. Christians and Jews who do not convert must pay the poll tax.”
THE BANU’L-HARITH ACCEPT ISLAM
I959 Mohammed sent Khalid to the people of Banu’l-Harith to give the tribe three days to accept Islam before he attacked it. So Khalid sent out riders to announce: “If you accept Islam you will be safe.” The tribe accepted and Khalid taught everyone Islam.
I960 When the tribe members came to visit Mohammed, he said they were the men who, when driven away, pushed forward. Then he said, “If Khalid had not written that you accepted Islam, I would have thrown your heads beneath your feet.”
I961 Mohammed then sent them back home with detailed religious instructions as well as the directive to send him one fifth of the spoils of war that were due him.
B1,10,501 Leaders from an Arab tribe came to Mohammed and said, “Our tribe is separated from you by distance and enemies, and we can only visit during the sacred months. Give us commandments so that we may bring them to our people.“
Mohammed said, “I command you to do four things, and I forbid you to do one. The things you must do are admit that there is but one god, Allah and Mohammed is His prophet; strictly follow rules governing prayer; pay taxes to support the needy; and, finally, give me one fifth of all spoils of war. The thing that you must not do is drink alcohol.”
THE POOR TAX
I965 Mohammed sent out tax collectors to every part of Islam to collect the poor tax, the zakat.
Mohammed and the Unbelievers
More Battles and Romantic Troubles
CHAPTER 19
THE ATTACK ON LIHYAN
I718 A few months after the annihilation of the last Jews of Medina, Mohammed led his troops on an attack upon the Arabs of Lihyan. They moved at a rapid pace but when they arrived, the Lihyan tribe was high in the mountains and fortified. They had been warned. He headed south with two hundred riders toward Mecca just for the psychological pressure. Then they headed back to Medina. War is deceit.
THE ATTACK ON DHU QARAD
I720 Mohammed had been back in Medina only a few days when the Ghatafan Ar-abs raided Mohammed’s camel pasture. They killed the Muslim herder and left with his wife and the camels. A rider came and told Mohammed and the chase was on. A small, quick posse was sent out ahead of a larger army. The posse was to make contact and harass the Ghatafans, and the army would come up and crush them.
I721 The army never engaged the Ghatafans, but the posse did manage to kill two of them and get one of their own killed. A few camels were recovered and they all went back to Medina.
THE RAID ON THE MUSTALIQ TRIBE
I725 Mohammed heard that the Arab tribe, the Mustaliqs, were gathering against him. So he set out with his army to oppose them. He contacted them at a watering hole and combat started. Islam was victorious and the Mustaliqs and their women, children, and goods were taken as spoils of war and distributed to the fighters. Only one Muslim was killed and that was by mistake by another Muslim.
M19,4292 I [Ibn Aun ] wrote to Nafi inquiring from him whether it was necessary to extend to the disbelievers an invitation to accept Islam before attacking them in fight. He wrote in reply to me that it was necessary in the early days of Islam. The Messenger of Allah made a raid upon Banu Mustaliq while they were unaware and their cattle were having a drink at the water. He killed those who fought and imprisoned others. On that very day, he cap-tured Al-Harith. Nafi said that this tradition was related to him by Umar who himself was among the raiding troops.
B5,59,459 Entering the mosque, Ibn Muhairiz saw Abu Said and asked him whether coitus interruptus was sanctified by Allah.
Abu Said said, “Accompanying Mohammed at the Battle of Banu Al-Mustaliq, we were rewarded with Arab captives, including several woman which were very sought after because celibacy had become quite a hardship. We had planned to practice coitus interruptus but felt that we should seek instruction first from Mohammed. [Ed. Pregnancy was undesirable in the slaves because it diminished their value on the market.]
“Mohammed said, however, ‘It is better that you not interrupt copulation to prevent pregnancy, because if a soul is predestined to exist, then it will exist.’”
After the battle, a fight broke out between the original Immigrants of the Quraysh tribe and the Helpers of Medina. Although Islam tried to have no tribal differences, there were rivalries between the Immigrants and the Helpers.
I726 One of the Helpers and an Immigrant were at the water when one shoved the other and they fell to fighting. One called out for his allies, the Helpers, and the other yelled for his friends, the Immigrants. Both groups were professional killers and the insults started. One Helper, who was a leader, said, “What? The Immigrants dispute our authority, and they have come to outnumber us in our own city. The Quraysh bums are an example of the old saying, ‘Feed a dog and it will devour you.’ When we return to our town, the stronger will drive out the weaker.”
I726 When this was reported back to Mohammed, Umar was standing there and said, “Tell Abbad to go and kill him.” Mohammed was in a bind. “Then people will say that Mohammed will kill his own,” he said. “No. Give orders to set off now.” It was earlier than he usually set out. He had the Muslims walk on foot for a day and night until, when they stopped, they were completely exhausted and fell to sleep at once. Mohammed’s strategy worked. The men were too tired to argue and fight. The next morning they got up and a forced march with all the captives and their livestock finally put them back in Medina.
I728 After they had been back in Medina only a short time, another of the Helpers, a man of authority, came to Mohammed and offered to kill the offending Helper for Mohammed. Mohammed said no, that it could all be worked out. He turned to Umar, who had suggested killing the man immediately and said, “Now what do you think? Had I killed him when everyone was angry it would have created civil war. Now his own offer to kill him.” Umar replied that Mohammed was the better strategist. But the tension between the Helpers and the Immigrants was to fester and erupt later.
I729 The captives of the tribe of Mustaliq were parceled out as spoils of war and ransom prices set upon their heads. If no one paid the ransoms, they were treated as spoils of war and slaves. One of them was a beautiful woman with a high price on her head. She came to Mohammed and asked him to see if the price could be reduced. Mohammed had a better idea. He would pay the ransom for the beautiful woman, and she could become his wife—in spite of the fact that she was already married. [The Koran gave permission for sex with married captives.] It was a deal. Mohammed paid the ransom, and the beautiful woman became wife number seven.
I729 A side effect of this marriage was that the captives were now related to Mo-hammed’s wife, so they were all released without ransom.
THE LIE
When Mohammed went on his missions to attack and kill those who resisted Is-lam, he took one of his wives with him. Which one got to go was determined by lots. Mohammed took Aisha with him to the battle against the Mustaliqs. At the time of this expedition she was fifteen years old and the favorite of his seven wives.
I731 There was a problem in taking one of Mohammed’s wives on an expedition and that was privacy. By now the veil had been proscribed for his wives so they could not be seen or heard. On trips, they rode in a tent-covered box that could be mounted on a camel’s saddle. On the way back from the expedition Aisha had gone out in the morning to relieve herself. When she returned, she discovered that she had lost a necklace and went back to find it. Meanwhile, the men in charge loaded the howdah on the camel and off they went without Aisha.
I732 When Aisha got back, the entire group had moved on. She wrapped herself in her smock and waited. They would return. Lo and behold, who should show up but a young warrior who had not spent the night in the camp. He put her on his camel and walked in search of the army, leading the camel with her on it. They could not catch the army, so the pair entered Medina, the young man leading the camel with Aisha on it.
I732 Here was a woman no one was even to speak with or see, and they had spent the day together all alone. Tongues began to wag, imaginations worked overtime, and gossip spread. Aisha fell ill and was bedridden for three weeks. While she was ill Mo-hammed spoke in the mosque about it. “Why are men worrying me about my family and saying false things about a man of whom I know nothing but good?”
I734 Tempers flared and men offered to kill the gossips. Something had to be done. Mohammed called in two men and asked their advice. The first said that both Aisha and the young man were innocent and the rumors were lies. Ali said, “Women are plentiful and can be exchanged one for another. Ask Aisha’s slave girl about Aisha.” So the slave girl was brought in, and Ali beat her severely and told her to tell Mo-hammed the truth about Aisha. The beaten slave told the prophet of Allah that she knew no ill of Aisha.
I735 Mohammed went to Aisha and told her what people were saying and that if she had done wrong to ask Allah for forgiveness. She told him she had done nothing to be forgiven for. Mohammed went into one of his trance states and Allah told him Aisha was innocent and the gossips should be flogged. This event determined the Koranic law about adultery. Adultery must have four witnesses. No witnesses means there is no adultery. Therefore, Aisha was innocent.
24:12 Why did the believing men and women, when they heard this, not think better of their own people and say, “This is an obvious lie”? Why did they not bring four witnesses? And because they could not find any witnesses, they are surely liars in Allah’s sight.
I735 As for those who gossiped and lied:
24:4 Those who make accusations against honorable women and are unable to pro-duce four witnesses should be given eighty lashes. Thereafter, do not accept their testimony, for they are terrible sinners, except those who repent afterwards and live righteously.
I736 But the scandal did not end there. One of those who were flogged was a poet. The young warrior who led Aisha’s camel appeared in a poem written by the poet and was offended, so he took his sword and cut the poet badly. The poet and his friends managed to bind the young warrior and take him to Mohammed. Mohammed wanted all the trouble to go away. He gave the wounded poet a nice home and a Christian slave girl for sex as compensation for the sword blow.
Mohammed and the Unbelievers
The Battle of the Ditch
CHAPTER 17
THE NEXT RAID
I662 After the second of the three clans of Jews had been cleansed from Medina there was no violence for nearly two months. Then Mohammed led his men out to fight an Arab tribe, a large group of non-believers who were well armed. No fighting occurred as each was afraid of the other.
THE LAST EXPEDITION TO BADR
I666 Mohammed had been in Medina four years. It had been a year since the Battle of Badr, and it was time to meet the Meccans again as promised. He went to Badr and waited for eight days. Abu Sufyan set out with his army to Badr, but it had been a dry year and there was no pasture for the animals; and no pasture meant no milk from the animals for food. Abu Sufyan decided to turn back and wait another year and hope for enough rain for good pasture. The only damage to the Meccans was some insulting poetry written by Muslims.
WIVES FOUR AND FIVE
M289 It had been about a year since his last marriage and now Mohammed added a new wife, Zaynab, daughter of Khuzaimah, who was the widow of his cousin killed at Badr. She only lived a year or two and was noted for her charity. His next wife, Um Salaam, was a widow as well; her husband had been mortally wounded at Uhud.
MARRIAGE TO HIS DAUGHTER-IN-LAW
M290 Mohammed had an adopted son, Zaid, and one day he went by his house. Mohammed went inside but Zaid was not there. The next part is not clear, but Mo-hammed saw his daughter-in-law, Zaynab bint Jahsh, in a thin dress, and her charms were evident. Mohammed was smitten and said, “Gracious Lord! Good Heavens! How you turn the hearts of men!”
M290 Zaynab had indeed turned the head of the future king of Arabia, and she told her husband what Mohammed had said. The stepson went to Mohammed and said he would divorce Zaynab so he could have her. Mohammed said no, but Zaid went ahead and divorced her anyway. In Arabia, a union between a man and his daughter-in-law was incest and forbidden. While Mohammed was with Aisha he had a revela-tion and said, “Who will go and congratulate Zaynab and tell her that Allah has blessed our marriage?” The maid went right off to tell her the good news. So Mo-hammed added another wife—his ex–daughter-in-law. Since Zaid was not really a son, there was no incest.M291 Aisha never liked the beautiful Zaynab. Since the permission to marry had come from Allah, Zaynab lorded it over the other wives. They had been chosen by Mohammed, but she had been chosen by Allah.
The Koran:33:4 Allah has not given any man two hearts for one body, nor has He made your wives whom you divorce to be like your mothers, nor has He made your adopted sons like your real sons. [Previous to this verse, an Arab’s adopted children were treated as blood children. This verse relates to verse 37 of this sura.] These are only words you speak with your mouths, but Allah speaks the truth and guides to the right path. Name your adopted sons after their real fathers; this is more just in Al-lah’s sight. But if you do not know their fathers’ names, call them your brothers in the faith and your friends. There will be no blame on you if you sin unintentionally, but that which you intend in your heart will be held against you. Allah is forgiving and merciful.
33:37 And remember when you said to your adopted son [Zaid], the one who had received Allah’s favor [converted to Islam], “Keep your wife to yourself and fear Al-lah,” and you hid in your heart what Allah was to reveal, and you feared men [what people would say if he married his daughter-in-law], when it would have been right that you should fear Allah. And when Zaid divorced his wife, We gave her to you as your wife, so it would not be a sin for believers to marry the wives of their adopted sons, after they have divorced them. And Allah’s will must be carried out.
M292 It was about this time that the veil was imposed on women. No longer would any man, except the wife’s relatives, see the face of any of Mohammed’s wives. Mo-hammed now had many wives, and people were in and out of his apartments. He had just seen what happened when men saw young and beautiful women. His wives be-came “mothers of the faithful” and could not remarry after Mohammed died.
THE RAID ON DUMATUL JANDAL
I668 Mohammed returned to Medina and rested for some months. Then he set out on a raid to Dumatul Jandal but found no success in locating the enemy nonbelievers.
THE BATTLE OF THE DITCH
I669 Some of the Jews decided they needed to destroy Mohammed, and to do that they needed allies. Since allies were to be found in Mecca, they went there and par-leyed with the leaders of the Quraysh. Since this was a war of religion, the first thing the Quraysh wanted was proof of religious supremacy to Mohammed. The leaders said to the Jews, “You are people of the book, and you know our disagreement. Who has the better religion, the Quraysh or Mohammed?” The leaders of the Jews replied that the Quraysh had the better religion.
I669 So the Koran says:
4:51 Have you not seen those [Jews allied with the Meccans] to whom part of the Scriptures were given? They believe in idols and sorcery, and they say of the kafirs, “These are guided on a better path than the believers.” It is on these whom Allah has laid His curse. Those who are cursed by Allah will have no one to help them.
I669 That answer put the Quraysh in a good mood, and they were willing to fight Mohammed. Then the same Jews went to the Arab tribe of the Ghatafans and made an alliance with them to fight Mohammed.
I670 Mohammed had many spies in Mecca, so in no time he knew of the coming fight, and he set out to prepare for it. A Persian suggested to Mohammed that he build a trench as a barrier against the Meccans and their allies. Although this type of warfare was unknown to the Arabs, Mohammed was the master of war and saw that it would provide a good defense. For eight days the Arabs worked at building a trench around the weak points of Medina. To help with morale, Mohammed personally pitched in and took his turn at manual labor.
I671 Not predisposed to hard manual labor, the trench-diggers often left work early. The labor problems even worked their way into the Koran:
24:62 Only those who believe in Allah and His Messenger are the true believers, and when they are gathered together, do not leave until they have sought his permission. Those who ask your permission are the ones who truly believe in Allah and His Messenger. And when they ask your permission to leave for personal reasons, give permission to whom you please, and ask Allah for His indulgence on their behalf, for Allah is indulgent, merciful.
I673 The work was done just in time. The Quraysh and the other allies camped near the trench. Mohammed and his army camped on their side of the trench and sent the women and children to the forts.
I674 A Jew who had been exiled from Medina and moved to Mecca went to the last remaining Jewish tribe in Medina. The Jewish forts were outside the city and the trench defending Medina. At first the Jewish chief would not even open the door to the Jewish ally of the Meccans, but he relented when the visitor said the chief would not admit him because he was too stingy to feed him. At the insult to his hospitality, the Jewish chief opened the fort door. Once inside the visitor said, “Kab, I have brought you a great army and a chance for immortal fame. I am here with the Quraysh and their allies who want to crush our common enemy, Mohammed. We will not leave until we destroy him.” The chief replied, “You are a rain cloud with thunder and lightning but no rain. Go away.” And they argued back and forth. The visitor said that, if the allies left without killing Mohammed, then he would come back to the fort and await a common fortune with the last clan of Jews in Medina.
I675 The Jewish chief relented and agreed to help. Mohammed’s spies brought him this news before nightfall. So Mohammed sent his own agents to speak with the chief of the Jews. If the discussion went well, they could announce it to all; but, if not, they were to use coded language so they would not lessen the Muslims’ morale.
I675 The agents returned with a coded message: The last of the Jewish tribes was not going to help Mohammed. Coding the message had not helped morale; as time dragged on, muttering started inside the Muslim camp. One man said they had been promised the wealth of Rome and Persia and they were not even able to go to the privy safely. Another clan chief talked in public about returning to his home.
I676 Time pressed on for twenty days, and the Meccans were not capable of dealing with a new defensive strategy of a trench. They weren’t helped by the custom of ro-tating the overall command on a daily basis to different chiefs.
I677 Mohammed was in a bad spot, but his morale never flagged. His creativity in war showed itself again. He had said that war was deception and now was the time to put it to use. He sent an agent to the largest of the allies of the Quraysh, the Ghata-fans. Mohammed proposed a deal. The Ghatafans would go back home and Mo-hammed would pay them a third of the date crop of Medina the following year. There was a tentative agreement. When Mohammed talked about the plan with the two Medinan Arab clan chiefs, they balked. Basically, they said the Ghatafans could go to Hell; they would never impoverish themselves for nonbelievers. Mohammed went along with them.
I677 The “war” dragged on. A small party of the Meccans crossed the trench and skirmished, losing one man. Arrows were shot across the trench without effect. One arrow did hit Saed, chief of a Medinan clan. The small wound in his arm would play a great role later, but it was of no tactical importance now.
I681 One of the Ghatafans approached Mohammed saying he was a Muslim but no one else knew it. Mohammed told him, “Go and sow distrust among our enemies. War is deceit.”
B4,52,268 Mohammed said, “War is deceit.”
I681 Off the secret agent went to the Jews of Medina, for he had been a great “friend” of theirs in the past. Talking to the chief, the agent reminded him of the good times and then argued that, when the war was over, the Jews of Medina would still be in Medina and the Quraysh, the Ghatafans, and the rest of the Meccans and their allies would go home. And where would that leave the Jews? If things went badly the others could cut and run, but the Jews could not. He advised them not to fight alongside the Meccans. After the Meccans were gone, the Jews would be subject to Mohammed’s vengeance. “Before you fight alongside them,” Mohammed’s agent said, “demand that the Meccans send you some of their sons as hostages to ensure that they will fight and won’t leave you alone to suffer.”
“Good advice,” thought the Jews.
I681 The agent then went to Abu Sufyan and told him of his affection for him and his tribe. He had some confidential information that Abu Sufyan needed to know. Could he keep this quiet? He told them, “The Jews have regretted siding with you against Mohammed. They have a deal with him. They plan to ask for some of your chiefs and sons so they can be handed over to Mohammed. If the Jews ask for security hostages, don’t do it.”
I682 Next the agent of Mohammed went to the Ghatafan Arabs. He told them he was their best friend and repeated what he had told the Quraysh.
I682 Time was running out. The weather was bad. Food for troops and fodder for the animals was in short supply. It was time to finish this war. The Meccans and the Ghatafans sent representatives to the Jews of Medina and said it was time to fight and they needed to fulfill their end of the deal and send warriors. The Jews told them the next day was the Sabbath and they would not fight on their holy day. They would need some security hostages to ensure that the Meccans and their allies did not run off and leave the Jews to Mohammed alone.
I682 When the representatives came back with this message, it was very clear that the Jews were traitors and that Mohammed’s agent had told them the truth. They were allies no more, the lying Jews and the Meccans.
B4,52,86 Mohammed said, “When you face your enemy be patient.”
I683 That night was miserable—rainy, with a very cold wind. The next morning, Abu Sufyan, the chief of the Quraysh, saddled his camel and said, “This is not a per-manent camp; our horses and camels are dying. I am leaving and you can do as you wish.” The Meccans left as losers. Mohammed had won again.
THE ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF ABU SUFYAN
T1438 Mohammed sent two men to Mecca to kill his rival, Abu Sufyan. The plan was simple and the leader was from Mecca so he knew it well. They set out on one camel for Abu Sufyan’s home where one man would stand watch and the other would go in and put a knife in him. But the assisting Muslim wanted to go to the Kabah and pray. The leader argued against it because he was well known, but the other Muslim insisted. So they went to the Kabah and, sure enough, the leader was recognized. The Meccans set up a cry of alarm and the men fled Mecca. There was no way to kill Abu Sufyan now.
T1439 The Muslims ran to a cave on the outskirts of Mecca. They placed rocks in front of the cave and waited quietly. A Meccan approached the cave while cutting grass for his horse. The Muslim leader came out of the cave and killed him with a knife thrust to the belly. The man screamed loudly, and his companions came run-ning; however, they were more concerned with their dying comrade than the killers and left carrying the body. The Muslims waited for a while and then fled again.
T1440 On their way back to Medina, the Muslims met a one-eyed shepherd. It turned out that they were related by clan ties. The shepherd said he was not a Muslim nor would he ever be. As they sat talking, the shepherd lay back and went to sleep. The leader took his bow and drove its tip down through the shepherd’s one eye, into his brain, and out the back of his head. Then they headed on back to Medina.
T1440 On the road, the leader saw two Meccans who were enemies of Islam. He shot one and captured the other and marched him to Medina. When they got to Mo-hammed with the captive and told him the whole story of the killing, Mohammed laughed so hard they could see his back teeth. Then he blessed them.
If you are willing to do some math that is no harder than counting how many apples you have in your shopping cart, you can measure the core of Islamic political doctrine found in Mohammed’s biography, the Sira, a sacred text. What is surprising is that once you have a measure (metric) for Mohammed, you also have a measurement of our dhimmitude. It is an ugly and disgusting result.
THE SIRA: The totality of Islam is belief in the perfect truth of the Koran and following the Sunna of Mohammed. The Sunna is the actions and words of the perfect pattern of life, Mohammed. The Sunna is contained in the Sira and the Hadith (the Traditions of Mohammed). The Sira is half of the defining, foundational texts that determine the Sunna. The other half of the Sunna is the Hadith. The Islamic “Bible” is the Koran, the Sira and the Hadith.
The Sira is the life of Mohammed. There are three versions of the Sira given by three authors–Ibn Ishaq, al-Tabari, and Ibn Sa’d. They tell the same story, except for small details. Ishaq’s Sira is the oldest and the most authoritative.
Ishaq’s Sira is a large book that starts with a history of Arabia before Mohammed. The overwhelmingly important part of the book is the story of Mohammed as the prophet of Allah. He becomes a prophet on page 106, so that is where the story really begins. There are a 110 pages of notes at the end. The remaining 621 pages of text are about Mohammed as a prophet.
When you read the Sira, you find that violence fills its pages. The first form of violence is verbal. After Mohammed’s first revelation, it only takes 12 pages until there is a fight and a Muslim bloodies a kafir. From that point on, Mohammed argues, threatens, curses, preaches, and condemns. So 98% of the text of Mohammed’s prophecy contains verbal violence against the kafirs (unbelievers).
Jihad starts 281 pages into his prophet-hood and it never stops for the next 409 pages. So 72% of the Sira’s report of his prophecy involves some form of jihad. Of course, the verbal abuse runs right along with the killing, torture, rape, theft, deceit and assassinations.
The Sira is not only a biography, but also a sacred text that contains the model for the perfect Islamic life. Again and again the Koran directs every Muslim to imitate Mohammed’s every word and deed. The Sira contains Islam’s grand political strategy.
There was peace for 2% of the Sira. That means that 98% of the Sira is devoted to ill will or with some form of argument, insults and curses against the kafirs. Put another way, 98% of the Sira is devoted to the suffering of the kafirs.
MOHAMMED, THE FILM: If the Sira were a 2-hour movie of Mohammed as a prophet, it would go like this:
Mohammed has his first revelation in the first scene. The first fight starts 2 minutes into the movie. After that it is plotting, shouting, arguing, threatening and preaching. Even when the scene is in Mohammed’s camp, the backdrop is always the struggle with the kafirs. Then 34 minutes into the film, the first killing happens and killing continues for the next 1 ½ hours. Armed raids, assassinations, plots, spies, executions, torture, rape, battles, and on and on. Kafirs (non-Muslims) die and lose. Mohammed dies. Islam triumphs. End of film.
DO THE MATH: The Sira defines Mohammed. The Sira IS Mohammed. Mohammed is Islam. Sira = kafir hatred = Mohammed = Islam. Therefore, Islam = kafir hatred.
DHIMMITUDE AND JEW HATRED: Let’s analyze a best-selling biography of Mohammed by Karen Armstrong. The Sira is the gold standard for Mohammed’s life and we have measured what its focus is. Let’s use the Sira to measure Armstrong’s biography. Whereas, the Sira devotes 72% of its length to the jihad phase of Mohammed, Armstrong only allots 27% of her text to Mohammed’s jihad. Her total material devoted to Mohammed as a prophet is 183 pages, out of which 49 are jihad. There should be 132 pages of jihad to match the Sira. She eliminated 83 pages of jihad in order to make Mohammed look less violent.
She does the same thing with the Jew hatred/jihad. In the Sira, 5.3% of the text relates to the destruction of the Jews-assassinations, executions, rapes, torture and exile. This 5.3% only includes the physical harm, there are many other pages of Jew hatred that do not involve violence. In Armstrong’s biography, the destruction of the Jews is 2.7% of the text. She omits half of the Jew hatred material.
Basically, Armstrong censors half of the Jewish destruction and two-thirds of the jihad in her biography of Mohammed.
The Sira contains two kinds of negative material about the Jews. I have mentioned the 5.3% devoted to physical violence, but there is much material that is a verbal violence against the Jews. If you add the verbal violence to the physical violence, the Sira is 8.6% Jew hatred.
Hitler’s Mein Kamph devotes 6.8% of its material to Jew hatred, but no actual violence. If you remove that 6.8% of Jewish rants you are left with a political treatise that is no worse than any of the current political propaganda. With the right editing, Hitler was no more than a German politician. If you published a Mein Kamph without the 6.8%, you would be criticized. But Armstrong’s book was critically acclaimed. Why is censoring the kafir/Jew hatred from Mohammed cheered, whereas the removal of the Jew hatred from Hitler would be condemned? It is simple, we think that European Jew hatred is evil, but that Islamic Jew hatred needs to be understood and ignored. What is astounding is that this argument is put forward by most Jews.
Of course, her bias does not stop with just censoring the material. Oh no, Armstrong cheers when the Meccan kafirs die. Every death of a kafir is wonderful, since it advances the glory of Mohammed. She justifies the destruction of the Jews and says that Christians have done worse.
Ms. Armstrong is a dhimmi. She is a loud and sympathetic cheerleader for Mohammed and insults the kafir Arabs. She represents the perfect dhimmi-centric writer.
TOTAL DHIMMITUDE: Now let’s measure the dhimmitude of the Republicans, Democrats, professors and the rest. Armstrong deletes most of Mohammed’s cruelty, but at least she is willing to show Mohammed to be a little evil. That is more than Department of Homeland Security, FBI, public education, Pentagon, ACLU or the local police do. You will search a long time to find a rabbi or pastor who knows nearly as much as Ms. Armstrong will admit. Almost all of our leaders are 100% dhimmi, since they deny all evil found in the doctrine of Islam.
Everyone hates Mein Kamph, without having actually read it, and will condemn Hitler and the Nazis, but try finding a kafir who hates the Sira and who will condemn Mohammed. Yet, the Sira contains 8.6% Jew hatred, Mein Kamph is 6.8% Jew hatred.
Do the math of dhimmitude. If those percentages were mortgage rates, everyone would understand the math because it involves money. But when it involves the survival of our civilization, we read the statement as–no problem with the Sira or Islam, but we need to talk about those Nazis.
As bad as Armstrong is-and she is dreadful-she is not as bad as the dhimmis in Washington, DC, the churches, synagogues, universities and the media. And the dhimmitude is the same in Europe, India, Canada and the rest of the world.
NOTE–POINT-OF-VIEW: There are always three points-of-view about Islam. The first is the believer-centric, Muslim, view. The second view is kafir-centric. A kafir has only one qualification-a kafir is anyone who does not believe that Mohammed is the prophet of Allah. There is a third view, the dhimmi-centric view. It is the believer-centric view except it is written by an apologist kafir.
This analysis is kafir-centric. Kafir-centric sees Islam from the standpoint of what happened to the kafir, how the kafir is treated. Today the history of the victim is popular fare for the colleges-African slave and native American history, for example. Kafir history is the history of the victim of Islam. When will this history be taught in our schools?
Bill Warner
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