The Prophet (s.a.a.w.)
wrote to Juraij bin Matta, called Muqawqas,
vicegerent of Egypt and Alexandria saying:
“In the Name of
Allâh, the Most Beneficent, the Most
Merciful.
From Muhammad servant of Allâh and His
Messenger to Muqawqas, vicegerent of Egypt.
Peace be upon him who follows true guidance.
Thereafter, I invite you to accept Islam.
Therefore, if you want security, accept
Islam. If you accept Islam, Allâh, the
Sublime, shall reward you doubly. But if you
refuse to do so, you will bear the burden of
the transgression of all the Copts.
“Say [O Muhammad (Peace be upon him)]: ‘O
people of the Scripture (Jews and
Christians), come to a word that is just
between us and you, that we worship none but
Allâh, and that we associate no partners
with Him, and that none of us shall take
others as lords besides Allâh.’ Then, if
they turn away, say: ‘Bear witness that we
are Muslims.’ ” [3:64]
Hatib bin Abi Balta‘a, who was chosen to
communicate the message, requested an
audience with Muqawqas before imparting the
contents of the letter. He addressed Egypt’s
vicegerent saying:
“There used to be someone before you who had
arrogated the status of the Supreme Lord, so
Allâh punished him and made an example of
him in the Hereafter, and in this life;
therefore, take warning and never set a bad
example to others.” Muqawqas answered: “We
are in no position to relinquish our
religion except for a better one.”
Hatib resumed: “We invite you to embrace
Islam, which will suffice you all what you
may lose. Our Prophet has called people to
profess this Faith, Quraish and the Jews
stood against him as bitter enemies, whereas
Christians stood closest to his Call. Upon
my life, Moses’s news about Christ is
identical to the latter’s good tidings about
the advent of Muhammad; likewise, this
invitation of ours to you to embrace Islam
is similar to your invitation to the people
of Torah to accept the New Testament. Once a
Prophet rises in a nation, he is eligible
for positive response, hence you are subject
to the same Divine Law. Bear in mind that we
have not come to dissuade you from religion
of Christ but rather bidding you to adhere
to its tenets.”
Muqawqas meditated over the contents of the
letter deeply and said: “I have come to the
conviction that this Prophet bids nothing
abominable; he is neither a straying
magician nor a lying soothsayer. He bears
the true manifest seeds of Prophethood, and
so I will consider the affair deeply.” He
took the parchment and ordered that it be
kept in an ivory casket. He called a scribe
to write the following reply in Arabic:
“In the Name of Allâh, the Most Beneficent,
the Most Merciful.
From Muqawqas to Muhammad bin ‘Abdullah:
Peace be upon you. I have read your letter
and understood its contents, and what you
are calling for. I already know that the
coming of a Prophet is still due, but I used
to believe he would be born in Syria. I am
sending you as presents two maids, who come
from noble Coptic families; clothing and a
steed for riding on. Peace be upon you.”
It is noteworthy that Muqawqas did not avail
himself of this priceless opportunity and he
did not embrace Islam. (Reference: Ar-Raheeq
Al-Makhtum)
Kepada Raja Persia,
Kisra
http://muhammad.net/biographies-mainmenu-38/28-letters-of-the-prophet-saaw/122-a-letter-to-chosroes-emperor-of-persia.html
“In the Name of
Allâh, the Most Beneficent, the Most
Merciful.
From Muhammad, the Messenger of Allâh to
Chosroes, king of Persia.
Peace be upon him who follows true guidance,
believes in Allâh and His Messenger and
testifies that there is no god but Allâh
Alone with no associate, and that Muhammad
is His slave and Messenger. I invite you to
accept the religion of Allâh. I am the
Messenger of Allâh sent to all people in
order that I may infuse fear of Allâh in
every living person, and that the charge may
be proved against those who reject the
Truth. Accept Islam as your religion so that
you may live in security, otherwise, you
will be responsible for all the sins of the
Magians.”
‘Abdullah bin Hudhafa As-Sahmi was chosen to
carry the letter. Abdullah got his camel
ready and bade farewell to his wife and son.
He set out, alone, and traversed mountains
and valleys until he reached the land of the
Persians.
He sought permission to enter into the
king's presence informing the guards of the
letter he was carrying. Khusraw Parvez
thereupon ordered his audience chamber to be
made ready and summoned his prominent aides.
When they had assembled he gave permission
for Abdullah to enter.
Abdullah entered and saw the Persian
potentate dressed in delicate, flowing robes
and wearing a great, neatly arranged turban.
On Abdullah was the plain, coarse clothes of
the bedouin. His head though was held high
and his feet were firm. The honor of Islam
burned fiercely in his breast and the power
of faith pulsated in his heart.
As soon as Khusraw Parvez saw him
approaching he signalled to one of his men
to take the letter from his hand.
"No," said Abdullah. 'The Prophet commanded
me to hand over this letter to you directly
and I shall not go against a command of the
Messenger of God."
"Let him come near to me," Khusraw said to
his guards and Abdullah went forward and
handed over the letter. Khusraw then called
an Arab clerk who originally came from Hira
and ordered him to open the letter in his
presence and read its contents. He began
reading:
"In the name of Allah, the Beneficent the
Merciful. From Muhammad, the Messenger of
God, to Khusraw the ruler of Persia. Peace
on whoever follows the guidance . . ."
Khusraw only heard this much of the letter
when the fire of anger burst within him. His
face became red and he began to perspire
around the neck. He snatched the letter from
the clerk's hand and began tearing it to
pieces without knowing what else it
contained and shouted, "Does he dare to
write to me like this, he who is my slave".
He was angry that the Prophet had not given
him precedence in his letter. He then
commanded Abdullah to be expelled from his
assembly.
Abdullah was taken away, not knowing what
would happen to him. Would he be killed or
would he be set free? But he did not want to
wait to find out. He said, "By God, I don't
care what happens to me after the letter of
the Prophet has been so badly treated." He
managed to get to his camel and rode off.
When Khusraw's anger had subsided he
commanded that Abdullah be brought before
him. But Abdullah was nowhere to be found.
They searched for him all the way to the
Arabian peninsula but found that he had gone
ahead.
Back in Madinah, Abdullah told the Prophet
how Khusraw had torn his letter to pieces
and the Prophet's only reply was, "May God
tear up his kingdom".
Meanwhile, Khusraw wrote to Badhan, his
deputy in the Yemen, to send two strong men
to "that man who has appeared in the Hijaz"
with orders to bring him to Persia.
Badhan dispatched two of his strongest men
to the Prophet and gave them a letter to him
in which he was ordered to go with the two
men to meet Khusraw without delay. Badhan
also asked the two men to get whatever
information they could on the Prophet and to
study his message closely.
The men set out, moving very quickly. At
Taif they met some Quraysh traders and asked
them about Muhammad. "He is in Yathrib,"
they said and they went on to Makkah feeling
extremely happy. This was good news for them
and they went around telling other Quraysh,
"You will be pleased. Khusraw is out to get
Muhammad and you will be rid of his evil."
The two men meanwhile made straight for
Madinah where they met the Prophet, handed
him the letter of Badhan and said to him,
"The king of kings, Khusraw, has written to
our ruler Badhan to send his men to get you.
We have come to take you with us. If you
come willingly, Khusraw has said that it
will be good for you and he will spare you
any punishment. If you refuse, you will know
the power of his punishment. He has power to
destroy you and your people."
The Prophet smiled and said to them, "Go
back to your mounts today and return
tomorrow."
On the following day, they came to the
Prophet and said to him, "Are you prepared
to go with us to meet Khusraw?"
"You shall not meet Khusraw after today,"
replied the Prophet. "God has killed him and
his son Shirwaih has taken his place on such
a night and on such a month."
The two men stared in the face of the
Prophet. They were completely dumbfounded.
"Do you know what you are saying?" they
asked. "Shall we write about this to Badhan?"
"Yes," replied the Prophet, "and say to him
that my religion has informed me about what
has happened to the Kingdom of Khusraw and
that if he should become Muslim, I would
appoint him ruler over what he now
controls".
The two men returned to the Yemen and told
Badhan what had happened. Badhan said, "If
what Muhammad has said is true, then he is a
Prophet. If not then we shall see what
happens to him."
Not long afterwards a letter from Shirwaih
came to Badhan in which he said, "I killed
Khusraw because of his tyranny against our
people. He regarded as lawful the killing of
leaders, the capturing of their women and
the expropriating of their wealth. When this
my letter reaches you, take the allegiance
of whoever is with you on my behalf."
As soon as Badhan had read Shirwaih's
letter, he threw it aside and announced his
entry into Islam. The Persians with him in
the Yemen also became Muslim.
That's the story of Abdullah ibn Hudhafah's
meeting with the Persian king. His meeting
with the Byzantine emperor took place during
the caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab. It too
is an astonishing story.
In the nineteenth year after the Hijrah,
Umar dispatched an army to fight against the
Byzantine. In it was Abdullah ibn Hudhafah.
News of the Muslim force reached the
Byzantine emperor. He had heard of their
sincerity of faith, and their willingness to
sacrifice their lives in the way of God and
His Prophet. He gave orders to his men to
bring to him any Muslim captive they might
take alive.
God willed that Abdullah ibn Hudhafah should
fall captive to the Byzantines and he was
brought before the Emperor. The Emperor
looked at Abdullah for a long time. Suddenly
he said, "I shall make a proposal to you."
"What is it?" asked Abdullah. "I suggest
that you become a Christian. If you do this,
you will be set free and I shall grant you a
safe refuge." The prisoner's reaction was
furious: "Death is preferable to me a
thousand times to what you ask me to do."
"I see that you are a bold man. However, if
you respond positively to what I propose to
you, I will give you a share in my authority
and swear you in as my aide."
The prisoner, shackled in his chains, smiled
and said, "By God, if you give me all that
you possess and all that the Arabs have in
exchange for giving up the religion of
Muhammad, I shall not do so."
"Then I shall kill you."
"Do what you want," answered Abdullah.
The emperor then had him put on a cross and
ordered his soldiers to throw spears at him,
first near his hands and then near his feet,
all the while telling him to accept
Christianity or at least give up his
religion. This he refused over and over
again to do.
The emperor then had him taken down from the
wooden cross. He called for a great pot to
be brought. This was filled with oil which
was then heated under a fierce fire. He then
had two other Muslim prisoners brought and
had one of them thrown into the boiling oil.
The prisoner's flesh sizzled and soon his
bones could be seen. The emperor turned to
Abdullah and invited him to Christianity.
This was the most terrible test that
Abdullah had to face up till now. But he
remained firm and the emperor gave up
trying. He then ordered that Abdullah too be
thrown into the pot. As he was being taken
away he began to shed tears. The emperor
thought that he had at last been broken and
had him brought back to him. He once more
suggested that Abdullah become a Christian
but to his astonishment, Abdullah refused.
"Damn you! Why did you weep then?" shouted
the emperor.
"I cried," said Abdullah, "because I said to
myself 'You will now be thrown into this pot
and your soul will depart'. What I really
desired then was to have as many souls as
the number of hairs on my body and to have
all of them thrown into this pot for the
sake of God."
The tyrant then said, "Will you kiss my
head? I will then set you free?"
"And all the Muslim prisoners also?" asked
Abdullah.
This the emperor agreed to do and Abdullah
said to himself, "One of the enemies of God!
I shall kiss his head and he shall set me
and all other Muslim prisoners free. There
can be no blame on me for doing this." He
then went up to the emperor and kissed his
forehead. All the Muslim prisoners were
released and handed over to Abdullah.
Abdullah ibn Hudhafah eventually came to
Umar ibn al-Khattab and told him what had
happened. Umar was greatly pleased and when
he looked at the prisoners he said, "Every
Muslim has a duty to kiss the head of
Abdullah ibn Khudhafah and I shall start."
Umar then got up and kissed the head of
Abdullah ibn Hudhafah .
Kepada Raja Romawi
Timur (atau Byzantium), Heraklius (disebut
juga Kaisar)
http://muhammad.net/biographies-mainmenu-38/28-letters-of-the-prophet-saaw/123-the-envoy-to-caesar-king-of-rome.html
Al-Bukhari
gave a long narration of the contents of the
letter sent by the Prophet (Peace be upon
him) to Hercules, king of the Byzantines:
“In the Name of
Allâh, the Most Beneficent, the Most
Merciful.
From Muhammad, the slave of Allâh and His
Messenger to Hercules, king of the
Byzantines. Blessed are those who follow
true guidance. I invite you to embrace Islam
so that you may live in security. If you
come within the fold of Islam, Allâh will
give you double reward, but in case you turn
your back upon it, then the burden of the
sins of all your people shall fall on your
shoulders.
“Say [O Muhammad (Peace be upon him)]: ‘O
people of the Scripture (Jews and
Christians), come to a word that is just
between us and you, that we worship none but
Allâh, and that we associate no partners
with Him, and that none of us shall take
others as lords besides Allâh.’ Then, if
they turn away, say: ‘Bear witness that we
are Muslims.’ ” [3:64]
The Muslim envoy, Dihyah bin
Khalifah Al-Kalbi, was ordered to hand the
letter over to king of Busra, who would in
turn, send it to Caesar.
Incidentally, Abu Sufyan bin Harb, who by
that time had not embraced Islam, was
summoned to the court and Hercules asked him
many questions about Muhammad (Peace be upon
him) and the religion which he preached. The
testimony which this avowed enemy of the
Prophet gave regarding the personal
excellence of the Prophet’s character and
the good that Islam was doing the human
race, left Hercules wonder-struck.
Al-Bukhâri, on the authority of Ibn Abbas,
narrated that Hercules sent for Abu Sufyan
and his companions, who happened to be
trading in Ash-Sham, Jerusalem. That was
during the truce that had been concluded
between the polytheists of Quraish and the
Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him).
Hercules, seated amongst his chiefs of
staff, asked, “Who amongst you is the
nearest relative to the man who claims to be
a Prophet?” “I (Abu Sufyan) replied: ‘I am
the nearest relative to him from amongst the
group.’ So they made me sit in front of him
and made my companions sit behind me. Then
he called upon his translator and said (to
him). ‘Tell them (i.e. Abu Sufyan’s
companions) that I am going to ask him (i.e.
Abu Sufyan) regarding that man who claims to
be a Prophet. So if he tells a lie,
they should contradict him (instantly)’. By
Allâh had I not been afraid that my
companions would consider me a liar, I would
have told lies”, Abu Sufyan later said.
Abu Sufyan’s testimony went as follows:
“Muhammad descends from a noble family. No
one of his family happened to assume
kingship. His followers are those deemed
weak with numbers ever growing. He neither
tells lies nor betrays others, we fight him
and he fights us but with alternate victory.
He bids people to worship Allâh Alone with
no associate, and abandon our fathers’
beliefs.
He orders us to observe prayer, honesty,
abstinence and maintain strong family ties.”
“Hercules, on hearing this testimony, turned
to his translator bidding him to communicate
to us his following impression which reveals
full conviction in the truthfulness of
Muhammad’s Prophethood: ‘I fully realize
that Prophets come from noble families; he
does not affect any previous example of
Prophethood. Since none of his ancestors was
a monarch, we cannot then allege that he is
a man trying to reclaim his father’s
monarchy. So long as he does not tell lies
to people, he is for the more reason, immune
to telling lies as regards Allâh. Concerning
his followers being those deemed weak with
numbers ever growing, it is something that
goes in agreement with questions of Faith
until this latter assumes its full
dimensions geographically and
demographically. I have understood that no
instance of apostasy has as yet appeared
among his followers, and this points to the
bliss of Faith that finds its abode in the
human heart. Betrayal, as I see, is alien to
him because real Prophets hold betrayal in .
Bidding worship of Allâh with no associates,
observance of prayer, honesty and abstinence
and prohibition of paganism are traits bound
to subject to him all my possessions. I have
already known that a Prophet must arise but
it has never occurred to me that he will be
an Arab from among you. If I was sure I
would be faithful to him, I might hope to
meet him, and if I were with him, I would
wash his feet.’ Hercules then requested that
the Prophet’s letter be read. The
observations of the emperor and finally the
definite and clear-cut exposition of the
Islamic message could not but create a tense
atmosphere amongst the clergy present at the
court. We were ordered to go out.” Abu
Sufyan said, “While coming out, I said to my
companions, ‘The matter of Ibn Abi Kabshah
[i.e. Muhammad (Peace be upon him)] has
become so prominent that even the king of
Banu Al-Asfar (i.e. the Romans) is afraid of
him.’ So I continued to believe that Allâh’s
Messenger (Peace be upon him) would be
victorious, till Allâh made me embrace
Islam.” The king did not embrace Islam — for
it was differently ordained. However, the
Muslim envoy was returned to Madinah with
the felicitations of the emperor.
Kepada Gubernur
Bahrain, Al-Mundzir bin Sawa
http://muhammad.net/biographies-mainmenu-38/28-letters-of-the-prophet-saaw/124-a-letter-to-mundhir-bin-sawa-governor-of-bahrain.html
The Prophet
(Peace be upon him) despatched ‘Al-‘Ala’ bin
Al-Hadrami to the governor of Bahrain,
carrying a letter inviting him to embrace
Islam. In reply, Al-Mundhir bin Sawa wrote
the following letter:
“Allâh’s Messenger (Peace be upon him)! I
received your injunctions. Prior to this, I
read your letter, which you wrote to the
people of Bahrain extending to them an
invitation to Islam. Islam appealed to some
of them and they entered the fold of Islam,
while others did not find it appealing. In
my country, there live Magians and Jews, and
therefore you may inform me of the treatment
to be extended to them.”
The Prophet (Peace be upon him) wrote the
following letter in reply to his:
“In the Name of
Allâh, the Most Beneficent, the Most
Merciful.
From Muhammad, Messenger of Allâh to Mundhir
bin Sawa.
Peace be on you! I praise Allâh with no
associate, and I bear witness that Muhammad
is His slave and Messenger.
Thereafter, I remind you of Allâh, the
Mighty, the Glorious. Whoever accepts
admonition, does it for his own good.
Whoever follows my messengers and acts in
accordance with their guidance, he, in fact,
accepts my advice.
My messengers have highly praised your
behaviour. You shall continue in your
present office. Give the new Muslims full
chance to preach their religion. I accept
your recommendation regarding the people of
Bahrain, and I pardon the offences of the
offenders; therefore, you may also forgive
them. Of the people of Bahrain whoever wants
to go on in their Jewish or Magian faith,
should be made to
pay Jizya (poll-tax).”
Kepada Gubernur Yamama,
Haudzan bin Ali-Hanafi
http://muhammad.net/biographies-mainmenu-38/28-letters-of-the-prophet-saaw/125-a-letter-to-haudha-bin-ali-governor-of-yamama.html
“In the Name of
Allâh, the Most Beneficent, the Most
Merciful.
From Muhammad, Messenger of Allâh to Haudha
bin ‘Ali:
Peace be upon him who follows true guidance.
Be informed that my religion shall prevail
everywhere. You should accept Islam, and
whatever under your command shall remain
yours.”
The envoy chosen was Sulait bin ‘Amr Al-‘Amiri,
who after communicating his message, carried
back the following reply to the Prophet
(Peace be upon him):
“The Faith, to which you invite me, is very
good. I am a famous orator and poet, the
Arabs highly respect me and I am of account
among them. If you include me in your
government, I am prepared to follow you.”
The governor then bestowed a reward on
Sulait and presented him with clothes made
of Hajr fabric.
Of course, he put all those presents in the
trust of the Prophet (Peace be upon him):
The Prophet (Peace be upon him) did not
accept Haudha’s demand. He usually turned
down such peremptory tone, and would say
that the whole matter was in the Hand of
Allâh, Who gave His land to whoever He
desired. Gabriel later came with the
Revelation that Haudha had died. The Prophet
(Peace be upon him), in the context of his
comme nt on this news, said: “Yamama is
bound to give rise to a liar who will
arrogate Prophethood to himself but he will
subsequently be killed.” In reply to a
question relating to the identity of the
killer, the Prophet said “It is one of you,
followers of Islam.”
(Ref: Ar-Raheeq Al-Makhtum)
Kepada Raja Damaskus,
Al-Harits bin Abu Syamr Al-Ghasanni
http://muhammad.net/biographies-mainmenu-38/28-letters-of-the-prophet-saaw/126-a-letter-to-harith-bin-abi-shamir-al-ghassani-king-of-damascus.html
“In the Name of
Allâh, the Most Beneficent, the Most
Merciful.
From Muhammad, Messenger of Allâh to Al-Harith
bin Abi Shamir.
Peace be upon him who follows true guidance,
believes in it and regards it as true. I
invite you to believe in Allâh Alone with no
associate, thenceafter your kingdom will
remain yours.”
Shuja‘ bin Wahab had the honour of taking
the letter to Harith, who upon hearing the
letter read in his audience, was madly
infuriated and uttered: “Who dares to
disposs me of my country, I’ll fight him
(the Prophet),” and arrogantly rejected the
Prophet’s invitation to the fold of Islam.
Kepada Raja Oman, Al-Harits
bin Abu Syamr Al-Ghasanni
http://muhammad.net/biographies-mainmenu-38/28-letters-of-the-prophet-saaw/127-letter-to-the-king-of-oman-jaifer-and-his-brother-abd-al-jalandi.html
“In the Name of
Allâh, the Most Beneficent, the Most
Merciful.
From Muhammad bin ‘Abdullah to Jaifer and
‘Abd Al-Jalandi.
Peace be upon him who follows true guidance;
thereafter I invite both of you to the Call
of Islam. Embrace Islam. Allâh has sent me
as a Prophet to all His creatures in order
that I may instil fear of Allâh in the
hearts of His disobedient creatures so that
there may be left no excuse for those who
deny Allâh. If you two accept Islam, you
will remain in command of your country; but
if you refuse my Call, you’ve got to
remember that all your possessions are
perishable. My horsemen will appropriate
your land, and my Prophethood will assume
preponderance over your kingship.”
‘Amr bin Al-’As, who was chosen to carry the
letter, narrated the following story that
happened before he was admitted into the
audience of Jaifer.
“When I arrived in ‘Oman I contacted ‘Abd,
who was known to be more mild-tempered than
his brother:
· ‘Amr: I am the messenger of Allâh’s
Prophet coming to see both, you and your
brother.
‘Abd: You have to see my brother and read to
him the letter you are carrying. He is my
senior in both age and kingship.
Incidentally, what is the purport of your
mission?
‘Amr: The Prophet calls upon you to believe
in Allâh Alone with no associate, discard
any
other deities and testify to the slavehood
and Messengership of Muhammad.
‘Abd: O ‘Amr! You come from a noble family,
but first of all, tell me what was your
father’s
attitude concerning this Faith? You know, we
used to follow his steps.
‘Amr: Death overtook him before believing in
Muhammad’s mission; I wish now he had
embraced Islam and been truthful to it
before his death. I myself had adopted the
same
attitude until Allâh guided me towards
Islam.
‘Abd: When did you embrace Islam?
‘Amr: When I was at Negus’s court. By the
way, the latter did also enter into the fold
of
Islam.
‘Abd: What was his people’s reaction?
‘Amr: They approved of him and followed his
steps.
‘Abd: The bishops and monks?
‘Amr: They did the same.
‘Abd: Beware ‘Amr of lying for this soon
betrays man.
‘Amr: I never tell lies; moreover, our
religion never allows it.
‘Abd: Has Hercules been informed of the
Islamization of Negus?
‘Amr: Yes, of course.
‘Abd: How did you happen to know that?
‘Amr: Negus used to pay land tax to
Hercules, but when the former embraced
Islam, he
swore he would discontinue that tax. When
this news reached Hercules, his courtiers
urged
him to take action against Negus but he
refused and added that he himself would do
the
same if he were not sparing of his kingship.
‘Abd: What does your Prophet exhort you to
do?
‘Amr: He exhorts us to obey Allâh, the
All-Mighty, the All-Glorious, be pious and
maintain
good ties with family kin; he forbids
disobedience, aggression, adultery, wine,
idolatry and
devotion to the cross.
‘Abd: Fair words and fair beliefs are those
you are calling for. I wish my brother would
follow
me to believe in Muhammad (s.a.a.w.) and
profess his religion, but my brother is
too sparing of his kingship to become a
subordinate.
‘Amr: Should your brother surrender himself
to Islam, the Prophet would give him
authority
over his people and take alms tax from the
wealthy people to be given to the needy.
‘Abd: That is fair behaviour. But what is
this alms tax you have mentioned?
‘Amr: It is a Divine injunction that alms
tax be taken from the well-to-do people who
have
surplus wealth and be distributed to the
poor.
‘Abd: I doubt if this can work among our
people.
‘Amr stayed for some days to be admitted
into Jaifer’s court until he was finally
granted this permit.
“He asked me to hand him the letter to read
it. After that he asked me how Quraish
reacted and I
answered that they had followed him, some
out of their own freewill and others
overpowered by
military fighting. Now, people have chosen
Islam in preference to other creeds, and
have realized
through their mental insight that they had
been straying in darkness. None, except you,
is now out
of the domain of Islam, so I advise you to
embrace Islam so that you can provide
security to
yourself and your country.”
Here, he asked me to call on him the
following day. The following day he showed
some reluctance in
receiving me but his brother, ‘Abd,
interceded and I was given the chance to see
him again but this
time to address me in a threatening arrogant
tone. However, after a private talk with his
brother
and reconsidering the whole situation, both
brothers embraced Islam and proved to be
true to Islam
that had begun to make its way into this new
area.
The context of this story reveals that this
letter was sent at a much later date than
the others, most
likely after the conquest of Makkah.
Through these letters, the Prophet managed
to communicate his Message to most monarchs
at that
time; some believed, while others remained
obdurate and persisted in their disbelief.
However, the
idea of embracing Islam, and the advent of a
new Prophet preoccupied all of them.
