Part 20

They bowed before the King and admitted that there was such a

“A Prophet (3), named Ahmed, will come after me. Accept him and pledge allegiance to him for he will be a True Prophet.”

When he heard this statement from the padres King Najashi spontaneously said that if he had not had the heavy responsibilities of government he would have immediately presented himself at the feet of the Last True Prophet 38 and travelled to Makkah.

Then addressing the Muslims he said that they could stay wherever they wished in his country, and instructed that from then onwards they were to be treated as state guests. He returned the gifts to ‘Amr bin AL’As and said that he could not accept bribes as Allah Almighty had not given him his country in return for a bribe. He said that at one stage he had lost the country, but Allah 3% had in His Mercy returned it to him. He could never forget the time when the people had rebelled against his father and killed him; his uncle had been made king. He had been taken out of the royal palace and sold to an Arab trader. One night lightening struck his uncle and he died; none of his twelve sons was capable of ruling the kingdom. Out of sheer necessity the people had searched for the trader; paid him the price, which he demanded and brought me back and enthroned. This kingdom was a blessing from Allah Almighty. King Najashi was singing Praises of Allah Almighty as he sat on his throne, and ‘Amr bin Al-’As, and his companion, ‘Abdullah bin Abi Rabee’ah who were listening to him were very embarrassed. But this satiation was hopeful was very encouraging for Ja’far bin Abi Talib % and his friends. The intelligent and rational speech given by Ja’far bin Abi Talib was as follows:

“Your Royal Majesty, we were idol worshippers, and cruelty and_ harshness were part of our existence. Every evil was found in its highest degree in us. We did not value a good name or care for respectability. Having Mercy on our barbaric condition Allah 3% in His Infinite Mercy sent a Messenger to us. In a short time this True Prophet 38 brought about a radical change in us.

His teachings brought purity into our lives and changed our characters completely. He taught us about the Pure Oneness of Allah Almighty, and our thoughts turned towards worship and

prayer, He also changed the direction and goals of our hearts and taught us to give charity to the poor. He taught us to tell the truth, behave well with our kith and kin and avoid lewdness and vulgarity. He told us it was wrong to swallow what belonged to the orphan and to avoid backbiting and defaming the characters of pure women. He taught us to be good to our neighbours. When we obeyed him and put his teachings into practice, we found a revolutionary change in our lives. We who were highway robbers became guides helping and steering others to the right path. Our hearts no longer longed for sins, but yearned to do good deeds. Our hearts were so moved and softened that we learned to cry.”

When the Quraish and their allies saw this change in us they just could not tolerate it. They started to put obstacles in our way. They started persecuting us and torturing us. We could not put up with their tyranny and despotism and finally left our beloved hometown, Makkah. Having suffered all kinds of troubles and tired of being beaten up, we came to your country hoping that you would not be cruel or unjust. Relying on your well-known benevolence and kindness, we hope to be given the opportunity to live here in peace.

It seemed as if King Najashi was transported into an ecstasy, when he heard the speech of Ja’far bin Abi Talib 4%. Very gently and affectionately he asked him to kindly recite to him some of the Ayaht revealed to the Prophet 3%. Ja’far bin Abi Talib <4 recited part of Sarah Maryam, and the King was very pleased and said that it seemed that the origin of these Verses and of those revealed to Isa ps seemed to be the same.

When the present bishop in the court heard the Ayét of seerah Maryam they were moved to tears. King Najashi wanted to hear more of the Noble Quran, saying it was beautiful and was truly the Word of Allah.

Thinking it was an opportune moment, Ja’far bin Abi Talib 4% asked the King toask’Amr bin Al-‘As and his companions what their crime was. Had they murdered anyone? Did they owe money to anyone? Were they slaves who had run away? Had they infringed upon the rights of any person? Had they stolen anybody’s property? Why had the Quraish sent these people after them?

King Najashi asked ‘Amr bin Al-‘As and his companion, ‘Abdullah bin Abu Rabee‘ah, what crime had been committed by these people? When they saw the regal majesty and wrath of Najashi they became nervous, and sent away from his court, having failed in their mission. Booth left the King’s court dragging their feet, abject and ashamed. They reached Makkah and_ narrated in detail what had happened in the court in Ethiopia. The Quraish were even more inflamed and immediately boycotted the Muslims.

Finally they planned that they would murder the Prophet 3&, but they failed in their attempt. Allah Almighty took away his Prophet 3% from their midst and provided the means by which he could reach AlMadinah, safe and sound. The Quraish pursued the Muslims even there to annihilate them completely, and asa result the two wars of Badr and Uhad were waged.

In the Battle of the Trenches the enemy made elaborate preparations to make a sudden assault on the Muslims. ‘Amr bin Al-’As took part in all these battles, but his heart was overawed and impressed by Islam. Then one day the idea came to him that acceptance of Islam would bring deliverance; he set out from Makkah to pledge his faith to the One True Allah and His Messenger. On the way he saw Khalid bin Waleed and ‘Uthman bin Talhah, who were on their way to Al-Madinah.

When Khalid bin Waleed saw him he asked him where he was planning to go. ‘Amr bin AL’As asked him where he was going. Khalid replied he was going to meet the Prophet 4 and swear allegiance to Islam. ‘Amr bin Al-’As replied:

“T have the same desire. Since our destination and objective is the same, and we had lost our way in the same manner, why don’t we travel together? Talking on topics of common interest on our journey we reached Al-Madinah in the month of Safar in 8 Hijrah. We went in the presence of the Prophet 38 and swore allegiance to Islam, in his presence. He was very benevolent and kind and said that Makkah had thrown its favourite sons towards them. First Khalid bin Waleed had the honour to swear the oath of allegiance and then ‘Uthman bin Talhah and finally | received this honour.”

Since some time before accepting Islam, in his mind, ‘Amr bin AlAs & had begun to feel a liking and inclination this pure religion. But the authority and influence of his father, and the arrogance and pride of the Quraish, had stood in his way from openly declaring himself a Muslim. He could feel very strongly and intensely that the Muslims were becoming stronger day by day. Islam was rising very rapidly and the Muslim was becoming a force to reckon with. Whoever opposed them faced a crushing defeat; it was as if they are fated to fail. At every moment he felt that Islam was spreading over the whole region rapidly and people in large numbers were eagerly entering its fold. He felt that Islam would finally triumph and every other power would be crushed and reduced to smithereens.

All the rebellious and malicious plots of his father and his friends and kindred could not harm the Prophet 3% and his fellow Muslims in any way. These thoughts and feelings became so deeply embedded in his heart and mind that he was constantly engrossed in thinking of what to do next. Restlessness and anxiety seemed to perturb and overpower him.

Things came to such a pass that he gathered together those companions of his who relied and depended on him, and accepted his word as_ the last word in all matters. They trusted him absolutely and felt it was an honour to walk on the path chosen by him. He told them:

“1 feel that the Muslim will get ascendancy and reach it zenith. Islam is like a magnet, attracting and enamouring people very fast. Anyone who opposes it is bound to face defeat; at this critical juncture it would be better for us to migrate to Ethiopia. The king there, Najashi, is a very kind and soft-hearted man and we can find refuge there. It would be better to live as subjects of Najashi, than live subjugated by the Muslim. There would be an added advantage; if the Muslims take over our land we will escape from their cruelty and tyranny. On the other hand, if our people overcome them, there is nothing to prevent us from returning to own country.

He continues to say:

“All_ my companions said that you are true and agreed with my plan, and were willing to migrate to Ethiopia. Then I suggested

that we carry some expensive gifts with us to present them to the King. This would help to soften his heart towards us. We bought some very fine quality leather and some other things and set out for Ethiopia. When we reached the court of the King we entered his presence bowing our heads very respectfully, and offered our gifts to him. As we were entering, we saw ‘Amr bin Umayyah Zamri leaving the court. The Prophet 38 had sent him as an ambassador.”

After the King had accepted our gifts with pleasure, I took what! considered an opportune moment to request him to hand over the man, who had just left his presence, as I wished to kill him. The moment I uttered this phrase, King Najashi got into a towering royal rage and asked wrathfully if I wanted to kill the ambassador of the Prophet 3. He was the being to whom Allah Almighty sent revelations through His Angel, the every same Angel who had visited Masa >X\ a and other Prophets of Allah. He told me | should fear the Wrath of Allah Almighty. When I saw His Majesty’s grandeur and wrath, I began to tremble all over. When his anger subsided somewhat he spoke to me in very gentle tones.