A R C H I V E S
Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| A typical event following the Battle of Hunayn |
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| Halima |
| 03/02/05 at 01:17:11 |
| With the conquest of Makka, many former enemies of Islam accepted belief. After years of enmity and battle, it was naturally difficult for them to acquire sincerity of belief at the very outset of their conversion. So, God's Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, in order to `reconcile their hearts' and enable them to become committed more fully and sincerely to Islam, preferred them over the others in the distribution of the spoils of war following the Battle of Hunayn, which took place shortly after the conquest of Makka. The spoils consisted of 24,000 camels, 40,000 sheep and goats and 10,000 pounds of gold and silver. God's Messenger gave Abu Sufyan and his family 300 camels and 250 pounds of gold and silver, 200 camels to Hakim ibn Hizam, and 100 camels each to Nusayr ibn al-Harith, Qays ibn Asiyy, Safwan ibn Umayya, Malik ibn Awf, Akra ibn Habis and `Uyayna ibn Hisn. By doing this, God's Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, also repaired the wounded pride of the Makkan chiefs. Some of the younger Muslims among the Helpers (the Ansar of Madina), however devoted to God's Messenger and the cause of Islam they were, were upset at the distribution, not because of attachment to worldly things but because those Makkan chiefs had once been the most bitter enemies of Islam and had inflicted severe blows upon them in the previous battles. This upset might have caused the beginning of a movement of dissent among the Muslims. When informed of the situation by Sa`d ibn `Ubada, who was one of the two leaders of the Helpers, God's Messenger ordered that the Helpers should come together in a certain place where he would address them. When they were assembled, he began his address to them in a dramatic way to attract and hold their attention and to impress their souls. He said: O Community of the Helpers! I have heard that you are displeased with me. Following this striking opening, he continued in that powerful impressive style, reminding the Helpers of God's blessings upon them through him. He said: Were you not in misguidance when I came to you? And has God not guided you to the truth through me? Were you not in poverty when I came to you? And has God not enriched you through me? Were you not in internal conflicts when I came to you? And has God not reconciled you through me? The Helpers gave the same unanimous answer to each question of God's Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings: — True, O God's Messenger! We are indebted to God and His Messenger! After reminding them of God's infinite blessings upon them through him, God's Messenger recounted the services of the Helpers to Islam, saying: O Community of the Helpers! If you had desired, you could have answered me differently and said: Your people denied you but we believed in you; you came to us left alone to yourself, but we admitted you and protected you. Your people exiled you but we embraced you. You came to us with nothing to subsist on, and we met all your needs. If you had responded to me so, you would have told the truth and no one would have stood up to contradict you. O Community of the Helpers! If you were upset when I gave some worldly goods to those whom I desired to become Muslims, do you not wish to return home with God's Messenger while the others are returning with camels and sheep? I swear by God, in Whose Hand of Power is my soul, that if all other people took a different direction from that of the Helpers, I would go, without hesitation, along with the Helpers. Had it not been for the Emigration, I wished so much I had been one from the Helpers! O God, protect the Helpers and their descendants! These words were enough for the Helpers to burst into tears, and all of them responded with one voice, saying: — We are content with God and His Messenger. We desire nothing else. Although uttered extempore, this speech, besides nipping in the bud a possible dissenting movement, reconquered the hearts of the Helpers, may God be pleased with them all. It will be worthwhile briefly to analyze this in order to understand its sagacity. First of all, this speech was made to the Helpers separately from the Emigrants. Since the ones who felt offended by the Prophet's distribution of the war spoils were from the Helpers. God's Messenger excluded the Emigrants to enable him to deliver a more precise and direct speech and to get the addressees to concentrate more on what he would say. By excluding the Emigrants, God's Messenger honoured the Helpers specifically and exerted a psychological influence upon them from the outset. A further merit of this decision is that some of his statements, such as `while the others are returning with sheep and camels', might have hurt the feelings of Makkans. Similarly, his praise of the Helpers and prayer for them exclusively might have hurt the feelings of the Emigrants, who had left their families and native land for the sake of God's Messenger. Second, the speech, when considered in its Arabic original, is extraordinary for the eloquence of its rhetoric. Third, it is worth repeating that God's Messenger had won the attention of his listeners after the dramatic opening and then, by continuing to speak to them and for them, he succeeded in keeping them in rapt attention. Fourth, God's Messenger did not resort to flattery or a diplomatic mode of statement. Rather, he spoke in plain sincerity, which was vital in securing the desired influence upon the listeners. Fifth, the extempore nature of the speech was also significant in obtaining the desired result. The freshness and force of such an unprepared address, on such occasions, is often more affecting than prepared words. Those few examples I have cited to illustrate the intellect of God's Messenger demonstrate that he did not speak or act of himself; rather, what he said and did carried the charge or force of one fulfilling a Divine mission. |
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