something that is good, then follow him.”1
Group prayer is characteristic of the Islamic faith. Congregational prayer is so important that many scholars consider it a duty. In the early days of Islam, it gave the new Muslims a sense of identity. Therefore, they were keen to go out in groups to offer their prayers. One day, a group of Muslims were discovered by unbelievers who insulted them and ridiculed their prayer. The two groups were soon involved in a heated argument, since the Muslims felt they could face up to them. Saʿd ibn Abī Waqqāṣ, who was not yet twenty, took a camel bone and hit one of the unbelievers with it, injuring him. This was the first time blood was ever spilled in defence of Islam. But the incident indicated the readiness and willingness of the Muslims to defend themselves. However, they were restrained by God from getting involved in a fight with the unbelievers.
The First Islamic School
The Prophet’s efforts to mould his followers into a closely-knit community prompted him to establish a centre for the Muslims. Obviously, in those early days, it was not possible for the Muslims to hold their meetings in public. Therefore, the Prophet chose the house of one of his companions, al-Arqam, to be the meeting-place. At that time al-Arqam was about 20 years old; he belonged to the clan of Makhzūm, to which Abū Jahl also belonged. His house was near al-Ṣafā, in the centre of Makkah. In other words, the Prophet chose a house which was right in the midst of the concentration of unbelievers. That was a very strategic spot, since the Quraysh could not have expected that such a meeting-place would be chosen in that central area under the very nose of Abū Jahl, the archenemy of Islam. Nevertheless, the Prophet was able to meet his companions there, teach them the basic principles of their faith, strengthen their bond of brotherhood, and shape their community in the true Islamic mould so that it could serve as an example for future generations, whenever a Muslim community came into existence.2
As days went by and the Quraysh increased its opposition to Islam, it became more and more aware that the followers of Muhammad were setting themselves apart as a community. Therefore, it was important for the Quraysh to try to establish a counter-bond. They wanted their faith to override all considerations of family and tribal ties. But how could pagan idolatry give any person an ideal for which a family tie could be sacrificed? A group of the Makhzūm clan decided that they would use strong tactics against those of their members who became Muslims. There were quite a few young men from the clan who adopted Islam, including Salamah ibn Hishām and ʿAyyāsh ibn Abī Rabīʿah. But in order for their plan to succeed, they also wanted to include with them a man who belonged to their best families, al-Walīd ibn al-Walīd. They went to his brother Hishām and told him that they wanted to punish those young men, so they would appreciate it if he turned his brother over to them. They said that in this way, they could be certain that no other men from their clan would contemplate joining the followers of Muhammad. Hishām told them that they could speak to his brother, but warned them against causing him any bodily harm. He said: “Take care, because if you kill him, then by God I will kill the most honourable among you.” Thus al-Walīd was spared the punishment, and the attempt of those men from Makhzūm was foiled.
Which Approach to Follow: Moderate or Hard Line?
When a protracted problem of the kind Makkah witnessed in those early years of Islam (in the early seventh century) faces any human society, there will be no shortage of suggestions on how it may be solved. The methods suggested, however, will simply alternate between the moderate and conciliatory approach, which aims at reaching some sort of accommodation with the other side, and militant, hard-line proposals which advocate a radical solution.
When the chiefs of Makkah took stock of their longstanding dispute with Muhammad and realized that despite their opposition, the followers of Muhammad were increasing and moulding themselves into a separate community, the far-sighted among them recognized that the problem they faced was unlikely to fade away or disappear. One of the first to realize that Islam was getting stronger, despite all the Quraysh’s attempts to stop its advance, was ʿUtbah ibn Rabīʿah, one of the leading figures in Makkah.
One day, as ʿUtbah was sitting with a group of the Quraysh notables, he noticed the Prophet sitting alone close to the Kaʿbah. ʿUtbah suggested to his friends: “Shall we go to Muhammad and make him some offers? He may accept one or the other. If he does we will give him that and put an end to our problem with him.”
This idea was greeted with unanimous approval. As ʿUtbah sat with the Prophet he addressed him: “My nephew, you know you command a position of high esteem and noble birth among us. You have brought into the life of your community something very serious indeed. You have thus caused disunity to creep into their ranks; you have belittled their ideals, ridiculed their gods and their religion and spoken ill of their forefathers. Now listen to me. I am making you some offers which I would like you to consider. You may, perhaps, find some of them acceptable.”
The Prophet asked him to make his proposals, and listened attentively. ʿUtbah said: “My nephew, if you have started this affair hoping to make money out of it, we are all willing to give you some of our own wealth so that you would be the richest among us. If it is honour and position you want, we will make you our master and seek your advice in all matters. If it is a throne you are after, we will make you our king. If, on the other hand, you are possessed and are unable to resist what overwhelms you, we will spare no expense in seeking a medical cure for you.”
When ʿUtbah stopped, the Prophet asked him whether he had finished. As ʿUtbah affirmed that he had, the Prophet asked him to listen to what he had to say. The Prophet then recited the first 38 verses of Sūrah 41 of the Qur’ān. ʿUtbah listened attentively. When the Prophet finished his recitation, he prostrated himself in humble devotion to God, before saying to ʿUtbah: “You have heard what I have to say and you can make up your own mind.”
ʿUtbah left quietly and went to his people, who realized as they saw him approaching that a change had come over him. They looked up at him curiously, listening to his words: “I have heard something the like of which I have never heard in my life. It is neither poetry nor sorcery. Take up the suggestion I am making to you, and lay the blame for the outcome at my door. Leave this man alone. What I have heard from him will certainly bring about great events. Should the rest of the Arabs kill him, you would have been spared the trouble. If he wins, whatever glory he achieves will be yours.” They retorted: “He has certainly bewitched you.” He said: “I have stated my opinion, and you can do as you wish.”3
Once again the Quraysh seemed totally unable to listen to words of wisdom. ʿUtbah was known among them as a man of objective views, balanced temperament and moderate approach. What he was suggesting to them was simply to adopt a wait-and-see policy. They would lose nothing by doing that. Indeed, they would stand to gain if the Prophet were successful with his efforts. But they preferred to suppress the new call, wasting in the process all chances of prospective gain.
A Tilt Towards the Hard Line
As the days passed and week followed week, with no hint of rapprochement between the Prophet and the Quraysh, an atmosphere of polarization infiltrated life in Makkah. This polarization was so real that it occasionally transcended tribal loyalties. This meant that no Muslim, whatever his position or his tribal affiliation, was immune from harassment by the Makkans, should the opportunity for such harassment arise. To torment Muslims and subject them to physical torture or mental pressure became the favourite pastime for the Quraysh hardliners. Their victims were numerous and of various tribes and positions.
The Prophet himself was not immune to this, despite the protection afforded him by his uncle and his clan. Rather than violate their own tribal standards, the Makkan leaders made their henchmen abuse the Prophet by word, gesture and action. They accused him of being a magician, a poet, and a fortune-teller, and told him to his face that he was mad. All this, however, did not affect the Prophet or weaken his resolve to carry on with his mission, conveying the word of God
