The Life of Muhammad

by M. Husayn Haykal

  The Anger of Nature

  On that same night a very strong wind blew and an extremely heavy rain fell. Thunder deafened the ears and the lightning was blinding. The storm was so wild that it swept the tents of the enemy off the ground and brought havoc to their camp. It struck fear into their hearts, and they believed that the Muslims were seizing this opportunity to launch their attack. Tulayhah ibn Khuwaylid was the first to rise and openly to suggest to the Makkans and their allies to flee for their lives. He claimed that these evil omens signaled the start of Muhammad’s attack. Abu Sufyan followed him with the same counsel. “O people of Quraysh,” he said, “Surely this is no place for you. The date trees around are uprooted and our work camels have perished. The Banu Qurayzah have abandoned us and cooperated with our enemies; the storm has taken its toll. All these things have brought terrible disadvantage to us. Let us move away from here. I shall be the first to give up.” The armies prepared to withdraw, and each man carried as little as his camel, horse, or shoulders could bear and began to move while the storm continued to rage. The withdrawal was led by Quraysh, followed by Ghatafan and their allies. When the morning came, there was not one of them to be seen in the area. The Muslims returned to their homes in Madinah with the Prophet and gave praise and thanks to God for their escape from the travails of war.

  The Campaign against Banu Qurayzah

  Muhammad pondered the general situation of the cause of Islam. God had seen fit to remove the outside enemy, but the Banu Qurayzah remain in the midst of Madinah. Surely they were capable of repeating their treason in another season. Were it not for the internal division and sudden withdrawal of the Makkans and their allies, the Banu Qurayzah would have attacked Madinah and helped in the routing of the Muslims. Did not the common saying counsel, “Do not cut off the tail of the viper and allow it to go free?” The Banu Qurayzah, therefore, must be completely destroyed. The Prophet-May God’s peace and blessing be upon him-ordered a mu’adhdhin to proclaim: “No pious Muslim will hold the mid-afternoon prayer except in the quarter of Banu Qurayzah,” and a general invasion began. He appointed ‘Ali commander of the operation. Despite their exhaustion after the long siege, the Muslims advanced fully confident of the result. It is true that the Banu Qurayzah had fortified houses like those of Banu al Nadir. But if these were sufficient for defending them from Makkan attack, they were futile against the Muslims who were already in possession of the lands surrounding the Banu Qurayzah. Upon arrival at the Banu Qurayzah quarters, the Muslims found Huyayy ibn Akhtab al Nadir! bitterly reviling Muhammad, refuting his message and attacking the honor of his women. It was as though the Banu Qurayzah had a notion of what was coming to them now that the Makkans and their allies had withdrawn. When the Prophet arrived at the scene, he was met by ‘Ali, who asked him not to approach the Jewish camp. Upon enquiry, Muhammad heard the Jews reviling him, and he said: “Miserable wretches that you are, didn’t God Himself put you to shame and send His curse upon you?” In the meantime, the Muslims continued to pour into the area, and soon thereafter Muhammad ordered the siege to begin.

  The siege lasted twenty-five days and nights during which only a few javelins, arrows, and stones were shot between the two combatants. The Banu Qurayzah did not dare leave their quarters a single time. When, exhausted, they realized that their fortifications were not going to avail them, and that they must sooner or later fall into Muslim hands, they sent word to the Prophet asking for Abu Lubabah, an al Aws tribesman and former ally, to negotiate with them. As he arrived, he was met by women and children in tears whose sight touched his heart. The Jews asked whether he counseled acquiescence to Muhammad’s judgment. He answered, “By all means!” And, passing his hand over his throat, he said: “Otherwise, it will be a general carnage.” Some biographer’s report that Abu Lubabah later regretted having given them this counsel. After he left, Ka’b ibn Asad, their leader, suggested that they follow Muhammad and convert to his faith, thereby securing themselves, their children, properties, and wealth from any harm. But the majority refused, promising not to abandon the Torah or exchange it for anything else. Ka’b then suggested that they kill their own women and children and go out to meet the Muslims with drawn swords free of any apprehension for their loved ones, and to fight Muhammad to the bitter end. His idea was that should they lose, there would be neither family nor children for which to worry, but if they should win, Muslim women and children would all become theirs. Once more, the Banu Qurayzah said “No.” They argued that life without their families was not worth the effort. Finally, Ka’b said that there remained no alternative for them but to acquiesce in Muhammad’s disposal of their case. After consulting one another, they decided that their fate would not be worse than that of Banu al Nadir, that their friends and former allies from al Aws tribe would give them some protection and that if they were to remove themselves to Adhri’at in al Sham, Muhammad would: have no objection to letting them go.

  Arbitration of Sa’d ibn Mu’adh

  Banu Qurayzah sent word to Muhammad proposing to evacuate their territory and remove themselves to Adhri’at, but Muhammad rejected their proposal and insisted on their abiding by his judgment. They sent to al Aws pleading that they should help them as al Khazraj had helped their client Jews before them. A group of al Aws tribesmen sought Muhammad and pleaded with him to accept from their allies a similar arrangement to that which he accepted from the allies of al Khazraj. Muhammad asked, “O men of al Aws, would you be happy if we allowed one of your men to arbitrate the case?” When they agreed, he asked them to nominate whomsoever they wished. This was communicated to the Jews, and the latter, unmindful of the fate that was lying in store for them, nominated Sa’d ibn Mu’adh. Sa’d was a reputable man of al Aws tribe, respected for his sound judgment. Previously, Sa’d was the first one to approach the Jews, to warn them adequately, even to predict to them that they might have to face Muhammad one day. He had witnessed the Jews cursing Muhammad and the Muslims. After his nomination and acceptance as arbitrator, Sa’d sought guarantees from the two parties that they would abide by his judgment. After these guarantees were secured, he commanded that Banu Qurayzah come out of their fortress and surrender their armour. Sa’d then pronounced his verdict that the fighting men be put to the sword, that their wealth be confiscated as war booty, and that the women and the children be taken as captives. When Muhammad heard the verdict, he said: “By Him Who dominates my soul, God is pleased with your judgment, O Sa’d; and so are the believers. You have surely done your duty.” He then proceeded to Madinah where he commanded a large grave to be dug for the Jewish fighters brought in to be killed and buried. The Banu Qurayzah did not expect such a harsh judgment from Sa’d ibn Mu’adh, their former ally. They thought that he would plead on their behalf as ‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy had done in the case of Banu Qaynuqa‘. It must have occurred to Sa’d that if the Makkans and their allies had achieved victory through the treachery of Banu Qurayzah, the Muslims would surely have been subjected to the same fate of being killed and mutilated. He therefore imposed upon them the fate to which they sought to subject the Muslims. That the Jews showed great patience in the midst of tragedy is recorded for us in the story of Huyayy ibn Akhtab when he was brought for execution. The Prophet said to him, “Had not God put you to shame, O Huyayy?” Huyayy answered, “Every man is going to taste of death. I have an appointed hour which has now come. I do not blame myself for arousing your emnity.” He then turned toward the people present and said, “O Men, it is all right to suffer God’s decree. This tragic fate has been decreed by God for Banu Isra’il.” Al Zubayr ibn Bata al Quraziyy, another Jew, had done a favor to Thabit ibn Qays on the day of Bu’ath when he let him free after capturing him. Thabit wanted to reciprocate the good deed on this occasion and asked the Prophet to grant him the favor of al Zubayr’s life. The Prophet approved Thabit’s request. When this came to the knowledge of al Zubayr, he pleaded that being an old man condemned to live in separation from his family and children, he had no use
for life. Thabit then begged the Prophet of God to grant him also the life of Zubayr’s wife and children, and the sparing of his property that al Zubayr might live in happiness. The Prophet again granted his request. After al Zubayr heard of his family’s salvation, he inquired about Ka’b ibn Asad, Huyayy ibn Akhtab, ‘Azzal ibn Samaw’al, and other leaders of the Banu Qurayzah. When he was told that they had all been killed, he asked to be dispatched with them, pleading: “I ask you, O Thabit, to dispatch me with my people, for life without them is not worth living, and I shall have no patience until I have rejoined my loved ones.” Thus, he was killed at his own demand. The Muslims were always opposed to killing any women or children. On that day, however, a Jewish woman was executed because she had killed a Muslim by dropping a millstone on his head. It was of this woman that ‘A’ishah used to say: “By God, I shall never cease to wonder how serenely that woman met her death.” On that day, four Jews converted to Islam and were saved from death.

  Huyayy’s Responsibility for the Tragedy

  We have seen how the lives of Banu Qurayzah were dependent upon Huyayy ibn al Akhtab, though the lives of both were terminated at the same time. It was he who violated the covenant that he, himself, had entered into with Muhammad when the latter forced Banu al Nadir’s evacuation from Madinah without killing a single person. Also, it was he who so incited the Quraysh, Ghatafan, and the other Arab tribes to fight Muhammad that he became the very embodiment of Jewish-Muslim enmity. It was he who indoctrinated the Jews with the idea that they should have no peace unless Muhammad and the Muslims were utterly destroyed. Likewise, it was he who inspired Banu Qurayzah to violate their covenant with Muhammad and to repudiate their neutrality in the struggle needlessly and at such terrible cost. Finally, it was he who came to the Banu Qurayzah after the withdrawal of the Makkans and aroused them to engage the Muslims in a hopeless fight that was doomed before it started. Had the Banu Qurayzah acquiesced in the judgment of Muhammad from the first day, and acknowledged their mistake in violating their previous covenant, their lives would have been saved. Unfortunately, Huyayy’s soul was possessed by a consuming Jewish enmity to the Muslims. He imparted such a measure of this enmity to the Band Qurayzah that their own ally, Sa’d ibn Mu’adh, believed that even if they were forgiven, they would soon rally the tribes again to fight the Muslims anew. Such was their obsession with hatred of Muhammad and the Muslims that the Jews believed no life was worth living as long as the Muslim power was not broken and the Muslims were not subjugated or killed. However harsh the verdict which the arbitrator had reached in this regard, it was dictated by self-defense, as the arbitrator had become convinced that the presence or destruction of the Jews was a question of life and death for the Muslims as well.

  The Spoils of War

  The Prophet divided the properties, women, and children of Banu Qurayzah among the Muslims after he had separated one-fifth for public purposes. Each man of the cavalry received two shares, one for himself and one for his horse. On that day, the Muslim force included thirty-six cavalrymen. Sa’d ibn Zayd al Ansari sent a number of Banu Qurayzah captives to Najd where he exchanged them for horses and armour in order to increase Muslim military power.

  Rayhanah, a captive woman of Banu Qurayzah, fell to the share of Muhammad, who offered her Islam. But she refused obstinately. Muhammad even offered to marry her, but she preferred to remain his captive. It was her strong attachment to her religion and people which must have prevented her from joining Islam as well as from marrying the Prophet. Her hatred for the Muslims and for their Prophet must have continued. No one had spoken of her beauty as they spoke of Zaynab, daughter of Jahsh, though a slight mention of this could be found in the chronicles. There was some disagreement as to whether she, upon entering the quarters of the Prophet, was asked to wear a veil as the protocol of the Prophet’s house demanded, or whether she remained like most other women of the Peninsula without a veil. One thing, however, is certain: namely, she remained in the quarters of Muhammad until her death.

  This expedition of the Makkans and their allies with its resultant destruction of the Banu Qurayzah enabled the Muslims to establish themselves as Madinah’s absolute masters. The power of the munafiqun was finally broken, and all Arab tribes admired Muslim power, dominion, and the new prestige of Muhammad as sovereign of Madinah. The Islamic message, however, was not meant for Madinah alone but for the whole of mankind. The Prophet and his companions still faced the task of preparing for the greater task ahead, namely bringing the word of God to the wide world, calling all men to the true faith and making that faith secure against all enemies. That is precisely what awaited them, and what we shall study in the sequel.

  Chapter 19

  From the Two Campaigns to the Treaty of Hudaybiyah

  Organization of the Arab Community

  After the Battle of the Ditch and the destruction of Banu Qurayzah, the situation in Madinah stabilized in favor of Muhammad and the Muslims. The Arab tribes so feared the Muslims that many Qurayshis began to think that it might have been better for their tribe to have made peace with Muhammad, especially since he himself was a Quraysh tribesman and the Muhajirun were all among its leaders and noblemen. The Muslims felt quite secure after they had destroyed Jewish power within and outside Madinah once and for all. For six months, they remained in Madinah during which their commerce prospered and they enjoyed a spell of peace and comfort. At the same time, the message of Muhammad crystallized in the minds of his followers, and they learned better to appreciate his teachings and observe his precepts. The Muslims followed their Prophet in reorganizing and remodeling the Arab community. Departing from tradition and reshaping society according to model principles were necessary steps in the making of that new society that Islam sought to establish in the world. In pre-Islamic days, the only social system known to the Arabs was that which their own customs had sanctified. In the matters of family and its organization, of marriage and its laws and divorce, and of the mutual relations of parents and childrenin all these human relations-pre-Islamic Arabia had not gone beyond the elementary dictates of its hard topography; namely, extreme laissez-faire on the one hand and extreme conservatism reaching to slavery and oppression on the other. Islam was therefore called upon to organize a nascent society which as yet had developed no traditions and looked with disdain on its heritage of social customs. Muslim society had great ambitions, however, for it looked forward to becoming within a short time the nucleus of a great civilization ready for a destiny of absorption of the Persian, Roman, and Egyptian civilizations. Islam was to give this nascent civilization its character and gradually to impress it with its own ethos and brand until, some day, God might find it proper to say of it

  “Today I have completed for you your religion; my bounty and grace have been conferred upon you conclusively; and I am pleased that your religion shall henceforth be Islam.” [Qur’an, 5:3]

  Relations between Men and Women

  Whatever the nomadic nature of Arabian civilization had been before Islam, and regardless of whether or not such cities as Makkah and Madinah had enjoyed a level of civilization unknown to the desert, relations between men and women had never extended much beyond the sexual. According to the witness of the Qur’an, as well as of the traditions of that age, such relations were determined only by considerations of class or tribe, and were quite primitive in every other respect. The women used to show themselves off not only to their husbands but to any other men they pleased. They used to go out into the open country singly or in groups and meet with men and youths without hindrance or sense of shame. They exchanged with men glances of passion and expressions of love and desire. This was done with such blase frankness and lack of shame that Hind, wife of Abu Sufyan, had no scruples whatever about singing on such a public and grave occasion as the Day of Uhud

  “Advance forward and we shall embrace you!

  Advance forward and we shall spread the carpets for you!

  Turn your backs and we shall avoid you!
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  Turn your backs and we shall never come to you.”

  Arab Eroticism

  Among a number of tribes, adultery was not at all regarded as a serious crime. Flirting and courting were common practices. Despite the prominent position of Abu Sufyan and his society, the chroniclers tell, concerning his wife, a great many tales of love and passion with other men without implying any stain on her reputation. Whenever a woman gave birth to an illegitimate child, she felt no restraint about proclaiming the identities of all the men with whom she had had love affairs so that her child might be attributed to the man whom he most resembled. Likewise, there was no limit to the number of wives a man could take or to the number of his women slaves and concubines. Men were completely free to do as they pleased, and women were perfectly free to give birth as they pleased. The whole domain of man-woman relations had no seriousness or gravity except where a scandal was uncovered which brought about disputes, fighting, or libel between one clan and another within the larger tribe. Only on such occasions did the flirtations, courtings, and adulterous rendezvous become reasons for shame, vituperation, or war. When hostility broke out between one house and another, men and women alike felt free to claim and accuse as they wished. The Arab’s imagination is by nature strong. Living as he does under the vault of heaven and moving constantly in search of pasture or trade, and being constantly forced into the excesses, exaggerations, and even lies which the life of trade usually entails, the Arab is given to the exercise of his imagination and cultivates it at all times whether for good or for ill, for peace or for war. Should a man, for instance, pour out his imagination in the most sentimental and affected forms when addressing his sweetheart in private, one would think that was normal. But when the same man readily and publicly pours out that same imagination, in the event of war against his sweetheart’s tribe or in personal disaffection for her, by describing her neck, breast, waist, hips, and all other aspects of her feminine form, we must conclude that that imagination knows little more of the woman than her sex, feminine form, and adeptness at making love. Despite the decisive blow which Islam had directed at this excessive cultivation of the imagination, much of it was embedded in the Arab psychic character described in the poetry of ‘Umar ibn Abu Rabi’ah. Indeed, Arabic love poetry has hardly ever been free of this trait; a measure of it can still be found in the modern poetry of our own day.