In the last section, we discussed how the call to Islam was elevated from a secret to a public level. In the last section, we discussed how the call to Islam was elevated from a secret to a public level. The Quraysh’s response was multifaceted, we have discussed a few. They took different measures at different stages. At first they didn’t care. Later they made sarcasm and when these didn’t work, they created pressure. They tempted the Prophet, but when the Prophet was in honor, they challenged him. The challenge of performing a miracle. Allah is not a slave of the Quraysh to do whatever they say. The most trusted of them was entrusted with the responsibility of prophethood. The most truthful among them was given the responsibility of calling to Islam. They saw the Holy Quran being revealed before their eyes. Even then, they did not believe but rather mocked. It hurt the Prophet. Allah knew very well that such people would not believe even if they were shown a miracle. Then, if they saw a miracle, they would proclaim it as magic. However, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was given the power to perform many miracles. We will discuss all that later. When they could not be subdued even after challenging the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), they resorted to torture and even murder. In the last episode, we discussed the six strategies of the Quraysh. They are attempts to pressure, humiliate, and discredit, putting pressure on the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), distorting his message, and ultimately ridiculing him. In this episode we will start from number seven, which is the challenge. This incident was narrated by Ibn Abbas. The Quraysh leaders met near the Kaaba. They said we would convince him with all kinds of arguments and he should not object. Then they summoned the Prophet, with great hope in his heart that they would embrace Islam. He wanted the best for them. He was very happy with their invitation. He thought maybe they had accepted his offer. Maybe they sympathized with Islam. The Prophet appeared running towards him. They said, “Look, Muhammad, we have sent you to make peace with you.” Their speech at the beginning was exactly what prompted the arrival. But after a while they started making embarrassing statements. They said, “By Allah, no one in Arabia has ever caused more pain than you. You have done everything against the religion of our ancestors, disrespect for the worship of gods and goddesses, and disrespect for our customs and traditions. You have created division in our society. You have left no stone unturned to destroy your relationship with us.” Saying this was to weaken the Prophet (peace be upon him) mentally. They did not say anything about what the Prophet was calling them to. They did not discuss whether the Prophet (peace be upon him) was telling the truth or lying.
They did not express interest in discussing the Prophet’s invitation or any of its contents. Because talking about the issue will weaken their position. Because the Prophet called them to the truth, he called them to goodness. He told them to abandon evil deeds. He called them to faith, leaving behind the ignorance of their people. An honest and intelligent person cannot refuse this call of the Prophet. But political science knows how to reject a beautiful truth call. And this rejection must be done in such a way that the person calling the person during the day may feel that he is guilty and everyone else is innocent. The call to Tawheed means that a group of people will be shaken and their sleep at night will be forbidden. Because if they accept the call of Tawhid, they will not be able to do whatever they want in society. They cannot run society according to their own whims. They cannot run society according to their own whims. They want to present the bearer of the message of Tawhid in a negative light to society because they will be attacked. He wants to show everyone that Islam is the root of all the problems. This strategy is a classical strategy. Pharaoh and his cabinet used this strategy They said about Moses (peace be upon him) that he wanted to cause trouble and corruption. That is, in today’s language, Moses (peace be upon him) is a terrorist. They said Moses wanted to change your way of life. Yet Moses (peace be upon him) told Pharaoh to stop his oppression. The Pharaoh gave it the name terrorism. They propagated that Moses, peace be upon him, gave the message of monotheism, and that Moses, peace be upon him, wanted to change your way of life. Or in modern terms, these terrorists want to ruin people’s lives. The Quraysh did the same thing. They presented it in such a way that Muhammad (peace be upon him) was responsible for the current division. Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the root of all problems. Islam is the cause of all the troubles in Mecca today. Not only that, they also inserted lies into these words. They said Muhammad (PBUH) insulted our gods and goddesses. However, Muhammad Salah Salam never insulted the gods and goddesses of the Quraysh. He spoke the truth. These gods and goddesses have no power, they are just clay idols. But they continued to use this as criticism and insult. Sadly, we see such behavior in our Muslim society too. When someone is told that this action is forbidden and you leave the action, they become offend. Feeling humiliated. But saying this as a good thing. When someone is called to prayer, he feels as if his personal affairs are being interfered with. But enjoining good and forbidding evil is for the good of others. But people ignore that fact. Because they don’t want to hear the words. They blamed the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) for the division in society. But the Quraysh have no idea why this division is happening. This division is the division between truth and falsehood. Conflict between Haq and Batel. Allah, the Messenger of Allah, called them to truth and goodness. But this was not the reason for the division, rather the division was caused because they were denying the truth. And sheltered in lies. But they created such an atmosphere among the Quraysh that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was the root of all conflict. These words were originally intended to put the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) on the backfoot. When someone is emotionally weak, that’s the right time to seduce them. The Quraysh did exactly that. They now showed him greed by placing all the blame on the Prophet (peace be upon him). They said, “Mohammed Salah Salam, if you are doing this for the sake of wealth, then we will provide you with all the wealth you need.” I will make you the richest among us. If you come to this religion out of greed for power, we will make you a king among us. And if you are doing this out of greed for women, we will bring you ten of the most beautiful women from the Quraysh tribe. Then we will marry them all to you. And if Satan is upon you, we will do whatever is necessary for your recovery. Even if we have to give all our wealth for that, we will sacrifice it. Just tell us what you want. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said very calmly, “I do not want anything you have said. I have not brought you the message of Islam in the hope of gaining money and power. Allah has sent me to you as a Messenger and has entrusted me with the Book, and I have come to you as a bearer of good news. And to warn. I have brought a message from Allah, and if you accept what I have brought to you, it will be better for you. In two places, this world and the hereafter. And if you refuse, then I will await the decision of Allah until He judges between you and me.” Having said this, the Prophet stopped.
Few words, but they are heavier and stronger than mountains. They understood what they understood. If the Prophet (peace be upon him) had wanted to, he could have rejected their proposal in this crowded assembly, but he did not want to miss this opportunity to spread Islam. So, not only did he say no, he presented his true intention to everyone. Why did he come and who sent him? What did he call them to? He explained to them that this call of Islam has nothing to do with money. He did not ask them to abandon the religion of their forefathers in the hope of some gain. He didn’t want power, he didn’t want money. If earning money had been the main objective, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) could have united the entire Arab world and conquered the Romans and Persians. To be honest, he had that qualification. But the Prophet does not want power or money. So he said, “I don’t want anything you said. I did not bring the message of Islam for money or to gain power over you. Allah has sent me as a Messenger to you, and has entrusted me with what He has commanded me to give you good news and to warn you. I have come to you with a message from my Lord only.”
The Quraysh were attracted to worldly things. They had no idea that a person’s personal beliefs could be based on money and ideology. To understand this, let’s take a look at our society. In our society, a bank job is considered a big deal. Because a job in a bank means earning a lot of money and building a flat in Dhaka within a few years. But when someone leaves a bank job or doesn’t want to enter that sector, a group of people point fingers at them. They say, “Are you crazy? Does anyone leave a job that pays that much?”
These secular people don’t understand what faith is. They don’t understand that there is another life after this one. And that life is real life. Anyway, let’s get back to the main point. The Quraysh thought that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) could be bought by showing the lure of luxury. They were repeatedly giving the best offer on their part. What is it about money, power, women, and a man’s weakness? The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) returned everything with one word.
He made it clear that even if the whole world gave him not only this, but also this, he would not budge from his mission. The Quraysh understood what they were meant to understand. They understood that there was no point in offering Mohamed Salah any more. So they challenged him now. It posed challenges that Muhammad (PBUH) could not meet individually. God could do anything if He wanted, but He did nothing for those who would do anything to abandon the world. The Quraysh said, “If you do not accept our matter, then know that our country is very narrow and very poor. So go and tell your Lord, from whom you have come, to remove these mountains and level the ground so that the land becomes wider. And why don’t you tell him to make some rivers flow through Mecca like the ones between Syria and Iraq? We want rivers just like everyone else. And yes, another thing we want is that you go to your Lord and ask Him to bring back to life some of our ancestors. Qusai bin Al was a very wise man and I will ask him if you are telling the truth. And if you accept this much love, we will give up following our ancestors and follow you.”
The language of the Quraysh is noteworthy. This language is as much a language of challenge as it is a language of irony. They were embarrassing the Prophet and their intention was to stop him by saying these things. But the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) replied in a calm voice that I was not sent for this reason. My Lord sent me for the reason that I am present before you. I have told you what I needed to tell you. If you accept it, it will be for your good. And for both this world and the Hereafter. And if you reject it, then I will have to wait patiently for Allah’s command. So that He may judge between us. If the Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) had been a liar, he would have shown many things. He could enchant them with the magic of words. But no, what he said is true. Allah did not give him the power to create rivers. He was not even given the power to raise the dead. To be honest, these are not the work of the prophets, but rather the work of the prophets is to convey the message of Tawheed to the Ummah. So the Prophet (peace be upon him) was only focusing on one aspect, which was that he came as a messenger of Allah. As a Mubashir and Manzil. As a bearer of good news and a warner. But the Quraysh were unyielding servants and continued to mock. Maybe they were testing the nerves of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Maybe they wanted to anger the Prophet (peace be upon him). In the case of Pharaoh, we saw that he was trying to anger Moses (peace be upon him) in various ways. Did he raise Musa (peace be upon him) by saying that he could defeat Musa (peace be upon him) with the power of his words? Musa Alai Salam was trying to weaken Musa Alai Salam mentally by saying that he had killed a man. The Quraysh were doing exactly the same thing, they wanted to call the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) incapable and a liar. For centuries, pagans have been doing this, distracting the messenger from his primary duty and keeping him busy with other tasks. To distract him from the task he was assigned to and keep him busy with other things. Attacking the messenger personally. Questioning the personality of the messenger. The Quraysh said, “Do one thing: send an angel from your Lord to bear witness that you are telling the truth. And tell your Lord to grant us some fortresses and some gold and silver. And tell him that he will fulfill your needs too. Because we see you making a living just like us.”
They were mocking, saying that if the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was a messenger from Allah, why was he earning money like others? So they were saying that he should bring wealth from Allah Almighty so that it would be proven that he was the closest servant of Allah. It is mentioned here that all the demands of the Quraysh were related to money. Their ingrained belief is that whoever has wealth is a servant closer to Allah. How can someone who has no wealth be a servant of Allah? That secular mentality, again and again. Money is everything, wealth is everything, they judge everything by money. Even some of the prophets. If the Prophet (peace be upon him) had been very rich, they would have obeyed him without hesitation, without asking these questions. In fact, attachment to the world is a major obstacle to practicing religion. In fact, attachment to the world is a major obstacle to practicing religion. Another thing is that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not get angry even after such sarcastic remarks. He came as a prophet and his responsibility was to call people to monotheism.
It is not his intention to accept the demands of the infidels. Therefore, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) did not answer even a single one of their useless demands. He returned to Tawheed. He said, “I will not do any of these things. I will not ask my Lord for any of these things. For these reasons I was not sent to you. Allah has sent me to preach His religion, and if you accept it, it will be good for you in the Hereafter and in this worldly life. And if you accept that, then I am of the patient. And I have referred this matter to my Lord until He judges between you and me.”
They said, “Okay, then tell your Lord to send us the punishment you prayed for.”
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said that it is in the hands of Allah, if He wills, He will punish you. They mocked and said, “O Muhammad, does your Lord not know that we ask you about these things? Why isn’t he helping you answer? We know who is teaching you this. A man from Yamama is teaching you this Quran. His name is R. Rahman. And we will never believe Rahman’s words again.”
The Quraysh suddenly turned to the story of a man named Rahman. One of them said, “Go and worship the angels who are the daughters of Allah.” Another said, “We will not believe you until you bring Allah and His angels before us.”
Let’s imagine the scene where everyone is mocking the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). He’s poking her and talking to her, telling her whatever she wants.
After mocking him, everyone left him, but after they left, one of them returned to the Prophet (peace be upon him). His name was Abdullah ibn Umayya. Seeing him return, it seemed as if he was regretting his Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Maybe he will apologize. Or will you comfort him? He said to him, “O Muhammad, your people have made you a good offer. They asked me to show you a miracle. That’s your objection. Then they was said, Bring the punishment upon them. You can’t do that either.” Now I’m telling you that I won’t believe you until you bring me a lader that can take me to the sky. You will climb the ladder and I will watch, then you will go to Allah and ask him to write a letter. It will be written that you are his prophet and it will have his signature on it. Then four angels will descend with that letter and they will also testify that you are the Messenger of Allah. To tell you the truth, even if you do so much, I still won’t trust you. This was the environment and the condition of the people around the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). And their mentality And their mentality. There is no doubt how difficult his mission was. He was calling to Islam some people who were dishonest and liars. Yet he did not despair, but continued to call people to Islam. Allah Almighty has mentioned some verses that are similar to the above incident in Surah Bani Israel.
And they say, “We will not believe you until you break open for us from the ground a spring. Or [until] you have a garden of palm tress and grapes and make rivers gush forth within them in force [and abundance] Or you make the heaven fall upon us in fragments as you have claimed or you bring Allah and the angels before [us] Or you have a house of gold or you ascend into the sky. And [even then], we will not believe in your ascension until you bring down to us a book we may read.” Say, “Exalted is my Lord! Was I ever but a human messenger?”
(Quran 17: 90-93)
There were many such incidents which were mentioned by Ibn Kathir in the book Al-Albina.
The second incident was narrated from Ibn Abbas who said that the people of Mecca asked to turn the mountain of Safa into gold. And the other mountains were moved away from them. As a result, they can produce vegetables very easily. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was told by Allah that he could wait for their request if he wished. And if you wish, you can make their wishes come true. But if they still refuse, they will be destroyed immediately. As was the case with the nations before them. Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “I will rather wait for them.” Allah Almighty says in this regard:
And nothing has prevented Us from sending signs except that the former peoples denied them. And We gave Thamud the she-camel as a visible sign, but they wronged her. And We send not the signs except as a warning.
(Quran 17: 59)
The third incident concerns the Jews. The Quraysh wanted to trap the Prophet (peace be upon him) with a question that only a prophet could answer. That’s why they came to the Jews. This incident was also narrated by Ibn Abbas. He narrated that the Quraysh sent Udba and Hadith to the Jews of Medina. You go and introduce yourself to the Jewish priests and inform them about him. And will ask about his truthfulness. Because they were the first people to receive the Holy Book. We do not have the knowledge they have about the Prophets and Messengers. The two of them set out and arrived in Medina. They informed the Jewish priests about the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and his sayings. They went and said, “You are a people who have received the Torah, and you should inform us about that person.” The Jewish priests said, “We will teach you three questions, and you will go back and ask him these three questions.” If he can answer correctly, then he is undoubtedly a truthful prophet. If he can’t, he must be a liar and a cheat. Then you decide about it. First you will ask him about a group of young men who were lost in the first youth era. What happened to them? Because amazing things happened around them. Then ask about the man who traveled from the east to the west of the world. What is his background? Then ask him what is the spirit? If he can give the correct answer about etc. then he is definitely a prophet. You will follow him or he is a liar. Do whatever we want with him.
Then Nasser and Off Da came back. They said, “We have come to know of something that will settle the dispute between Muhammad and you.”
The Jewish priests have advised us to ask him some questions. They told those things and the Quraysh came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and asked him: O Muhammad, tell us about these things. They are the ones asking the questions through the Jews.
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: I will tell you tomorrow about the matter you are asking about.
He forgot to say InshaAllah at that time. They went back. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) waited for fifteen days but no revelation came. Hazrat Jibril (peace be upon him) did not come. The people of Mecca were very happy and said that Muhammad Salah Salam had said that he would answer their questions in the next day, but even after 15 days, he did not give any answer. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) became anxious as the revelation ceased. The constant scolding of the people of Mecca was hurting him. Finally, Gabriel (peace be upon him) arrived with Surah Kahf. This Surah uses a few words due to impatience with the idolaters. This Surah contains the answer about the young man who was asked about and who traveled the world.
Elsewhere Allah said about the spirit:
Say, “If there were upon the earth angels walking securely, We would have sent down to them from the heaven an angel [as a] messenger.”
(Quran 17: 95)
The second question of the Mushfiquns, who learned from the Jews, was about entering the Cave.
We mention a few verses about this.
Or have you thought that the companions of the cave and the inscription were, among Our signs, a wonder? Mention] when the youths retreated to the cave and said, “Our Lord, grant us from Yourself mercy and prepare for us from our affair right guidance.” So We cast [a cover of sleep] over their ears within the cave for a number of years. Then We awakened them that We might show which of the two factions was most precise in calculating what [extent] they had remained in time. It is We who relate to you, [O Muhammad], their story in truth. Indeed, they were youths who believed in their Lord, and We increased them in guidance. And We made firm their hearts when they stood up and said, “Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth. Never will we invoke besides Him any deity. We would have certainly spoken, then, an excessive transgression.
(Quran 18: 9-14)
The third question the polytheists learned from the Jews was the rule of Dhul-Qarnayn. Allah Almighty also gave the answer in the same Surah.
Allah Almighty says about Dhul-Qarnayn:
And they ask you, [O Muhammad], about Dhul-Qarnayn. Say, “I will recite to you about him a report.” Indeed We established him upon the earth, and We gave him to everything a way. So he followed a way. Until, when he reached the setting of the sun, he found it [as if] setting in a spring of dark mud, and he found near it a people. Allah said, “O Dhul-Qarnayn, either you punish [them] or else adopt among them [a way of] goodness.” He said, “As for one who wrongs, we will punish him. Then he will be returned to his Lord, and He will punish him with a terrible punishment. But as for one who believes and does righteousness, he will have a reward of Paradise, and we will speak to him from our command with ease.”
(Quran 17: 83-88)
Here it appears that all three of the Jews’ questions have been answered except for one question, because that question was related to the spirit. And the knowledge of the spirit is the knowledge of the unseen. People have no knowledge about this. Thus every challenge of the Quraysh became ineffective.
Another thing worth mentioning here is the mentality of the Jews. They thought that the one who could answer these three questions would be the true prophet. The question is, is answering all questions the qualification for being a prophet? However, the Jews consider Moses (peace be upon him) as a prophet. And Moses (peace be upon him) did not have the knowledge that Khidr (peace be upon him) had. But Moses (peace be upon him) did not become a false prophet because he did not have this knowledge. Although every question of the Jews was answered, we must remember that only Allah has the knowledge of the unseen. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) knew only as much knowledge as Allah gave him. No more than that. The point we will discuss at this stage is hatred. When talking about violence, the name of Wahid bin Walid, the famous leader of the Quraysh, first comes to mind. He could not accept the Prophethood of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). He said that if Allah wanted to make a prophet, why wasn’t I chosen as a prophet? I am a wise and virtuous man, and I am older than Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
Another person from Taif spoke similarly. The most famous areas in the Hijab region are these two, one is Mecca and the other is Taif.
Allah Almighty mentioned this in Surah Az-Zukhruf:
And they said, “Why was this Qur’an not sent down upon a great man from [one of] the two cities?”
(Quran 43: 31)
A man named Shoaib came to Mecca from the type to raise. He himself narrated the first incident of his meeting with the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). I was walking with Abu Jahl on the way to Mecca. I was walking with Abu Jahl on the way to Mecca. I was walking with Abu Jahl on the way to Mecca. Why don’t you believe in Allah? Why don’t you accept Islam? Mohammad, when will you stop insulting our gods? If you want, we will testify to the mission you are carrying out. And if I knew you were telling the truth, I would have followed you. After Abu Jahl’s reply, Muhammad (PBUH) left. Then he looked at me and said, “I know from the outside that Muhammad is telling the truth.” But something is stopping me. When the people of the well said that we wanted the authority of Allah, we gave up our authority. They said we want ownership of the hijab. I gave that too. They said we want the battle flag back. I gave that too. Then they wanted to take over the responsibility of the soldier. Providing water for Hajj pilgrims. We let that happen too. Now when we have come to them, they say that there is a prophet among them. How do we compete with that? By God, we will never accept him. This whole issue of prophethood was just a family feud to Abu Jahl. There is a competition between two families. Abu Jahl’s main concern was who would take power.
Abu Jahl realized that while it was possible to compete in all other matters, it was not possible to compete with the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in the matter of prophethood.
So he decided that the family of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) would not be allowed to win. The Prophet’s family is ahead of him in this one respect. He can’t accept this at all. Jealousy, hatred, and hatred were constantly growing in his mind. And this became an obstacle in Abu Jahl’s path to accepting Islam. The Quran is a retelling of an incident of previous prophets. The powerful people in society oppose these prophets the most. Because they do not want to lose their position of power while obeying the one God.
Then came the ban on the Quran. Public recitation of the Quran was banned in Mecca to stop Islam. Because when the Holy Quran was recited in front of someone, they would listen with fascination. The influence of the Quran was so great that even the enemies listened to it attentively. We find several stories in the Sira about people who became Muslims just by listening to the recitation of the Quran. When the Quraysh saw that many people were becoming Muslims just by listening to the recitation of the Quran, they declared the recitation of the Quran to be prohibited. When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) would sit next to the Kaaba and recite the Qur’aan, the Quraysh would start shouting and shouting. So that people cannot hear the Quran. The Prophet would recite the Quran louder, drowning out their shouting.
But later God declared:
Say, “Call upon Allah or call upon the Most Merciful. Whichever [name] you call – to Him belong the best names.” And do not recite [too] loudly in your prayer or [too] quietly but seek between that an [intermediate] way.
(Quran 17: 110)
The Quraysh forbade the recitation of the Quran, but the Companions continued to sit. Especially Hazrat Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) and Umayr (may Allah be pleased with them) used to recite the Quran in public despite the prohibition. That’s why they had to suffer a lot. We will discuss that story later, InshaAllah.
Finally, we conclude with an incident from Uthba ibn Rabi’ah. About Uthba, the cousin of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). He was a man from the tribe of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) called Banu Hasheeh. If there was one person among the Quraysh who remained for a while, it was Utbah. Although there was hatred of Islam among the Quraysh leaders, the Uthba did not take such a strong position. There was some kindness in him. His name will come up again in the Taif incident. He was the only person who tried to bring the Quraysh back from the Battle of Badr. But nothing worked. In the end, he himself participated and died. Once the people of Quraysh said, “Let’s find someone who is skilled in magic and poetry.” He will confront Muhammad (peace be upon him) on our behalf, then Utba was sent. Utba was a clever man, he was skilled in the art of wordplay. He asked the Prophet (peace be upon him) who was better, Muhammad, you or Abu Talib? Very clever question. At that time, the ancestors were highly respected in Makkan society, and the descendants of Muhammad (peace be upon him) were highly respected by all of Makkans. There was no one who would speak against Abdul Muttalib or his family. As we have already said, speaking disparagingly of ancestors was a crime at that time. So when Utbah asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) about his father Abdullah and his grandfather Abu Talib, he remained silent. Then he said, “If you say that you are better than them, then the gods and goddesses they worship are also better than them.” And if you think you’re better than them, then present your argument. We also hear what you have to say. But by God, we have never seen a bigger fool than you in our lives. Who does such great harm to his own nation? You are creating division between us, increasing conflict. You mock our religion, we have become inferior to the Arabs because of you. People are saying that the Quraysh have magicians. It is surprising that Udba blames the Prophet (peace be upon him) for the fact that there are magicians among the Quraysh. However, this rumor was first spread by the Quraysh. However, this rumor was first spread by the Quraysh. But later they themselves become ashamed of their actions. By the God of invention, we are sitting here waiting for a pregnant woman to cry. Then we will fight each other with swords until we ourselves are destitute. His meaning was that Islam would cause wars. And that is why Muhammad (peace be upon him) is responsible. Then Udba Muhammad (PBUH) offered to give him whatever he wanted, wealth, money, etc. Their aim was to make the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) inactive by tempting him. What is noteworthy here is that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) listened attentively to all these words of salvation. He didn’t interrupt him even once in the middle of his speech. Because the Prophet (peace be upon him) was an excellent listener. And so, even though the words to get up were useless, he listened to everything calmly. Then Utbah stopped and the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) asked him in a soft voice: Utba, are you finished? Utba said yes it’s over. The Prophet (peace be upon him) did not respond to the question on his own, but recited a verse from the Quran.
[This is] a revelation from the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. A Book whose verses have been detailed, an Arabic Qur’an for a people who know, As a giver of good tidings and a warner; but most of them turn away, so they do not hear. And they say, “Our hearts are within coverings from that to which you invite us, and in our ears is deafness, and between us and you is a partition, so work; indeed, we are working.” Say, O [Muhammad], “I am only a man like you to whom it has been revealed that your god is but one God; so take a straight course to Him and seek His forgiveness.” And woe to those who associate others with Allah. Those who do not give zakah, and in the Hereafter they are disbelievers. Indeed, those who believe and do righteous deeds – for them is a reward uninterrupted. Say, “Do you indeed disbelieve in He who created the earth in two days and attribute to Him equals? That is the Lord of the worlds.” And He placed on the earth firmly set mountains over its surface, and He blessed it and determined therein its [creatures’] sustenance in four days without distinction – for [the information] of those who ask.
(Quran 41: 1-12)
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) kept reciting and kept reciting. Whenever you come to verse 13 where Allah says:
But if they turn away, then say, “I have warned you of a thunderbolt like the thunderbolt [that struck] ‘Aad and Thamud.
(Quran 41: 13)
As soon as this verse was recited, Uthba placed his hand on the face of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and said, “Stop arguing about our relationship.”
In this verse, the disbelievers were being threatened with punishment for their crimes. And Utpat knew that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was truthful and would say whatever he said literally. He got worried and said, “Please stop talking about us.” Utpal returned and told the Quraysh that he did not understand anything that Muhammad was reciting. But I understand one thing: the same punishment that came upon the people of Aad and Thamud will come upon us. That’s what he threatened. The Quraysh said, “Get away from here.” He spoke to you in clear Arabic, but you did not understand anything. Udbhab said, “I swear I didn’t understand anything about it.” Ibn Kathir narrated that Udbah said: “By God, he has said something that I have never heard in my life.” This is not poetry, nor magic, nor prophecy. People of Quraysh, listen to me, do not stand between these people. Leave him alone. The things he says will come true one day. If the Arabs defeat him, we won’t have to do anything else. And if he is victorious, you will be in his kingdom, his dignity is your dignity. The people of Quraysh got annoyed and said, “This man’s magic has got hold of you.” Utbah said, “I said what I think is best. You do what you think is best.” Some lessons can be learned from this production incident. First, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) dealt with different situations in different ways. Many times he answered people’s questions directly with verses from the Quran. This shows that the best way to explain Islam is through verses from the Quran. Because the word of God is the best word. Secondly, the Prophet (peace be upon him) was honorable in his mission. He did not pay attention to minor matters but focused on his major mission. If he were to answer whether he was the best or his grandfather was the best, he would get up and not listen to anything he said. Who is better here, Tawhid or the monotheism of Allah? We often see that while preaching Islam, the speaker deviates from his main topic by discussing other topics. That did not happen in the case of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). He did not discuss minor issues but focused on the main discussion through the Quran, which forced Utpa to leave. He gave the message that Allah is the Creator of the universe and the only true God. All the nations that rejected him were utterly destroyed. If Quraysh also disrespect him, the same fate will befall them. If Quraysh also disrespect him, the same fate will befall them. The point is that the Quraysh did to the Prophet whatever secularists could do to him. Money has nothing more to offer than power and women. Because these are heaven on earth. But Allah Himself offers Paradise to a believer. No one else can do that. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) turned down all their offers and said, “I do not want anything from you.” I have not brought you anything with which I would seek to gain money or power from you. Allah has sent me as a Messenger, given me the Book and commanded me to bring good news and warn. I have been sent to you to convey the messages of my Lord. If you accept my message, you will have a share in this world and the Hereafter. And if you do not accept, then I will wait for the command of Allah until He settles my dispute with you. At one point, the Quraysh became frustrated, unable to break the hold of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). After this incident, they finally wanted to compromise. That they will worship Allah and the Prophet will worship them. The Prophet explained to them that there is only one path to truth and that they should walk on that path. In that era, the Quraysh requested the Prophet to follow their religion, and in the present era, the hypocrites say that religion belongs to everyone, and the country belongs to everyone. Allegiance cannot be done solely to Allah, nor to any other interest. The last request of the Quraysh was that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) omit those verses that insult their gods and goddesses.
And when Our verses are recited to them as clear evidences, those who do not expect the meeting with Us say, “Bring us a Qur’an other than this or change it.” Say, [O Muhammad], “It is not for me to change it on my own accord. I only follow what is revealed to me. Indeed I fear, if I should disobey my Lord, the punishment of a tremendous Day.”
(Quran 10:15)
Quraysh reached this stage as they became weaker. There is a lesson for us missionaries from this discussion. That is, there should be no compromise on the teachings of Islam. Small matters are non-negotiable. The enemies of Islam have become smarter now, they come up with arguments that are becoming difficult for us to understand. Many renowned scholars of Islam fall into this trap.
