Sword Of Allah (P3)

He was tired now. He wanted to sleep for a short while, but the caravan of memories that had

started in his mind wouldn't let him sleep. He was taken to a day seven years back, when his

friends and tribesmen had schemed to assassinate the holy Prophet &. His father Al Walid had a

leading role in this scheme.

It was a night of September 622 CE. Quraish had planned to kill Allah's Prophet is while asleep

and the men they had selected to commit this heinous task were brutal savages in human form.

37-year-old Khalid, being a youth of one of the honorable families of Quraish tribe, also had a

part in this conspiracy. However, he was not among the men selected to actually commit this

crime. The seven-year-old night was as fresh in his memory as the previous night. He was

pleased over this assassination scheme, but sometimes, also felt a twinge of regret.

A man from his own tribe had refuted their religion of idolatry and had declared himself Allah's

prophet. Being pleased over the killing of such an enemy was quite natural. His displeasure arose

from the fact that he was a votary of challenging the enemy and then dueling with him. Killing a

sleeping enemy had never crossed his mind. Despite this, he did not oppose the conspiracy.

When the assassins entered the holy Prophet's house at the appointed time on the all- important

night, they were astonished to find the house vacant. Even the household chattels had been taken

out. They could neither find his horse nor his she-camel. Quraish had gone to sleep in the hope that the next morning will dawn with the long-awaited good news that the man who had refuted

their religion and had been inviting the people to his own was at last killed. But when the

morning came they found themselves looking at each other in frustration. In whispers, they

started asking one another: "Where did Muhammad go?"

Long before the planned time of his assassination, the noble Prophet St had got information about

the conspiracy, and therefore had migrated to Yasrib (Madinah). By morning, he had traveled far

away 2 .

Today, after seven years, Khalid was also traveling to Madinah and his mind was enthralled with

Muhammad's SB name - the man whom he had tried his best to kill in the Battle of Uhud, three

years later, but had failed. The Prophet it had gone away from the place in an injured state.

Prophet' s First Public Call towards

Islam

Memories kept flashing in KMlid's mind. His mind continued to travel back till it halted at an

evening sixteen years back. In that evening of 613 CE, the noble Prophet & had invited several

prominent men of Quraish to his house for dinner. After the meal was over, the holy Prophet

addressed his guests:

"Sons of 'Abdul Muttalib! The gift I am now going to present to you is something no Arab can

offer you. Allah has particularly selected me for this. I have been commanded by Allah to call

you towards a Din which will ensure success and bliss for you in this world as well as the

hereafter."

2 This is the author of this novel 'Inayatullah Altamash's view of the event. The writer whose Islamic spirit is highly

commendable seems to be among those who feel unsure about the miracles. The widely-accepted account is

different. Hazrat Maulana Idri's Khandhlavi writes in his authoritative work, Siratul Mustafa:

"Ibn Abbas reports that angel Jibril, the trustworthy, visited the holy Prophet • and informed him of the Quraish' s

meeting (where they conspired to kill the noble Prophet in the night). Jibril advised him not to spend the night in his

home. (Baihaqi)

When the night fell and the darkness spread, Quraish in accordance with the resolution of the meeting, encircled the

Prophet's house. They intended to attack him after he fell asleep. The Prophet asked Hazrat 'AH to wrap himself in

his green cloak and lie on his bed. He told him not to fear and that no harm would come his way. Though Quraish

were Prophet's enemies, they considered him the most truthful and trustworthy, and many of them kept their trust-

money and valuables with him. The Prophet gave all the trusts to Hazrat 'All so that he could return them to their

owners on the next day.

Outside, Abu Jahl, the accursed, was saying to his companions amidst loud guffaws, "Muhammad claims that if you

follow him, you will become the kings of Arabs and non-'Arabs in this world and in the hereafter, you will enter the

highest Paradise. And if you do not believe in him, you will die at the hands of his followers in this world and in the

hereafter, you will burn in the Hell-fire."

The noble Prophet Si came out of his home holding a handful of earth and said, "Yes, I do say this. And you are

among the ones who will be killed in this world by my companions, and in the hereafter you will burn in the Hell-

fire." The Prophet then recited the starting verses of the Quranic chapter of Yasi'n up to jjva

(We have enveloped them, so they do not see. - Quran 36:9) over the earth in his hand. He threw the earth upon

their heads. Allah cast a veil over their eyes, and the Prophet went past them without anyone of them seeing him.

(Siratul Mustafa 1/348-349)