Jahiliyyah - Part 7

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('Jahiliyyah' - traditionally translated " Time of Ignorance " , and used to apply

to the pre-Islamic period in Arabia, but in the Muslim sources its primary

meaning is violent and explosive irascibility, arrogance, tribal chauvinism.

[Muhammad Prophet For Our Time Glossary pg. 217].)

 

 

Jahiliyyah - Part 7

 

(p. 80) Instead of succumbing to the jahili spirit, the Qur'an urges Muslims to

behave with 'hilm'(*), a traditional Arab virtue. Men and women of hilm were

forbearing, patient, and merciful. [60] They could control their anger and

remain calm in the most difficult circumstances instead of exploding with rage;

they were slow to retaliate; they did not hit back when they suffered injury,

but left revenge to Allah. [61] Hilm also inspired positive action: if they

practiced hilm, Muslims would look after the weak and disadvantaged, liberate

their slaves, counsel each other to patience and compassion, and feed the

destitute, even when they were hungry themselves. [62] Muslims must always

behave with consummate gentleness and courtesy. They were men and women of

peace: " For true servants of the Most Gracious are they who walk gently on the

earth, and who, whenever the jahilun address them, reply 'Peace' ('salam!') " [63]

 

(*) hilm--A traditional Arab virtue which became central to Islam; forbearance,

patience, mercy, tranquility. (Glossary, p.216).

 

After the affair of the " satanic verses, " the conflict with the kafirun became

very nasty. Abu Jahl (*) regularly subjected any Muslims he met to vitriolic

verbal abuse and slandered them with vicious lies and rumor; he threatened

merchants with ruin, and simply beat up the " weaker " Muslims. (p.81) The kafirun

(**) could not hurt Muslims who had strong protectors, but they could attack

slaves and those who lacked adequate tribal patronage. Ummayah, chief of Jumah,

used to torture Bilal (***), his Abyssinian slave, by tying him up and forcing

him to lie exposed to the gruelling sun, with a huge boulder on his chest. Abu

Bakr (+) could not bear to watch Bilal suffering, so he bought him from Ummayah

and set him free. He also liberated a Muslim slave girl, when he saw 'Umar ibn

al-Khattab (++) flogging her. Some of the younger Muslims were locked up by

their families, who even tried to starve them into submission. The situation

became so serious that Muhammad sent the more vulnerable members of the ummah

[community] to Abyssinia, where the Christian governor gave them asylum. It was

becoming painfully clear that, unthinkable as it might seem, there might be no

future for the Muslims in Mecca.

 

(*) Abu Jahl-- " Father of Insolence, " the nickname given by the Muslims to Abu

l-Hakam; the most virulent of Muhammad's early opponents. (Glossary, p.222).

 

(**) kafir--(Plural: 'kafirun') Traditionally translated " unbeliever. " More

accurately it refers to somebody who ungratefully and aggressively rejects Allah

and refuses to acknowledge his dependence on the Creator. (Glossary, p.217).

 

(***) Bilal--An Abyssinian slave who converted to Islam; he became the first

'muezzin' to call the Muslims to prayer. (Glossary, p.224).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilal_ibn_Ribah#non-Muslim_views

 

(+) Abu Bakr--A close and trusted friend of Muhammad; one of the first converts

to Islam; the father of 'A'isha, the beloved wife of the Prophet. (Glossary,

p.222)

 

(++) 'Umar ibn al-Khattab--The nephew of Abu Jahl; at first passionately opposed

to Muhammad, but later became one of his closest companions. (Glossary, p.227).

 

It must have been very difficult indeed for the Muslims, brought up in the

jahili spirit, to practice hilm and turn the other cheek. Even Muhammad

sometimes had to struggle to maintain his composure. One of the early surahs

[chapters of the Qur'an] expresses his rage against his uncle Abu Lahab and his

wife, who used to scatter sharp thorns outside his house. [64] On one occasion,

Muhammad overheard some of the Qurayshan chiefs jeering at him contemptuously

while he was circumambulating the Kabah. For a while he was able to keep his

rising anger in check, but by the time he had completed the third circuit, his

face was as black as thunder. He stopped in his tracks, faced the kafirun, and,

instead of wishing them " Peace, " as the Qur'an enjoined, said grimly: " Will you

listen to me, O Quraysh. By him who holds my life in His hand, I bring you

slaughter! " He uttered the last word so threateningly that the chiefs were

silenced. (p.82) But the next day, they had recovered their nerve. They leapt on

Muhammad when he arrived in the Haram (*), encircled him menacingly, and started

to rough him up, pulling him about by his robe. This time, Muhammad did not

respond aggressively, but allowed the chiefs to manhandle him, until Abu Bakr

intervened, weeping: " Would you kill a man for saying Allah is my lord? " [65]

 

(*) haram--Sacred; forbidden--hence " sanctuary, " especially the sanctuary

surrounding the Kabah where all violence was prohibited. (Glossary, p.216).

 

But this kind of behavior could sometimes be counterproductive. One day, Abu

Jahl came upon Muhammad near the Safa Gate (*), an important site of the hajj,

and was so incensed to see him calmly occupying this sacred spot that he

exploded in true jahili style. Again, Muhammad refused to retaliate, but sat and

listened to the string of devastating insults without uttering a word. Finally

Abu Jahl ended his tirade and went to join some of the other chiefs in the

Haram, while Muhammad went sadly and silently home. But that evening, his uncle

Hamzah, who had been out hunting, heard what had happened and became

incandescent with fury. He set off immediately to find Abu Jahl, and hit him

hard with his bow. " Will you insult him when I follow his religion? " he yelled.

" Hit me back if you can! " Loath to take on Hamzah, whose physical strength was

legendary in Mecca, Abu Jahl hastily restrained his companions, admitting that

he had grievously insulted Muhammad. [66]

 

(*) Safa--A hill to the east of the Kabah; during the 'hajj', pilgrims would run

between Safa and Marwah. (Glossary, p.221).

 

Hamzah (*) became a devout Muslim, but this was not exactly the way that

Muhammad would have wished his uncle to enter Islam. Toward the end of 616,

there was another, even more surprising conversion. (p.83) 'Umar ibn al-Khattab

had decided that it was time to kill Muhammad, and strode through the streets of

Mecca, sword in hand, toward a house at the foot of Mount Safa, where he heard

that the Prophet was spending the afternoon. He did not know that his sister

Fatimah bint al-Khattab and her husband had secretly become Muslims. Thinking

that 'Umar was safely out of the way, they had invited one of the few literate

Muslims to come and recite the latest surah. But on his way to Mount Safa, 'Umar

was intercepted by another Muslim, who fearing for Muhammad's life, informed

'Umar that his own sister had converted to Islam. 'Umar rushed home, and was

horrified to hear the words of the Qur'an issuing from an upstairs window. " What

is this balderdash! " he roared as he burst into the room. The reciter fled in

terror, dropping the manuscript in his haste, while 'Umar threw his sister to

the ground. But when he saw that she was bleeding, he felt ashamed, picked up

the manuscript, and began to read the surah. 'Umar was one of the judges of the

poetry competition in 'Ukaz, (**) and realized at once that he was looking at

something unique. This was quite different from a conventional Arabic ode. " How

fine and noble is this speech, " he exclaimed with wonder, and immediately the

beauty of the Qur'an diffused his rage and touched a core of receptivity deeply

buried within him. Yet again he grabbed his sword, and ran through the streets

to the house where Muhammad was. " What has brought you, Ibn al-Khattab? " asked

the Prophet. " I have come to you to believe in God and his apostle and what he

has brought from God, " 'Umar replied. Muhammad gave thanks so loudly that

everybody in the house, who had dived for cover as soon as they saw 'Umar, came

out of hiding, scarcely able to believe what had happened. [67}

 

(*) Hamzah ibn al-Muttalib--One of Muhammad's uncles; a warrior of prodigious

strength, who converted to Islam and died at the battle of Uhud. (Glossary,

p.224)

 

(**) 'Ukaz--The site of one of the great trade fairs, where a poetry contest was

held each year. (Glossary, p.221).

 

(p.84) Ibn Ishaq has recorded another, less dramatic but equally significant

version of 'Umar's conversion. He had set out to join some friends for a drink

in the market one evening, but when his friends failed to turn up, decided to

perform the tawaf (*) instead. The Haram was entirely deserted, except for

Muhammad, who was standing close to the Kabah, reciting the Qur'an quietly to

himself. 'Umar decided that he wanted to listen, so he crept under the damask

cloth that covered the shrine and edged his way round until he was standing

directly in front of Muhammad. As he said later: " There was nothing between us

but the cover of the Kabah " --all his defenses but one were down. Then the power

of the Qur'an did its work: " When I heard the Qur'an, my heart softened and I

wept, and Islam (**) entered into me. " [68] 'Umar's conversion was a bitter blow

to the opposition, but because he was protected by his clan, there was nothing

that they could do to hurt him.

 

(*) tawaf--The seven ritual circumambulations around the Kabah. (Glossary,

p.219).

 

(**) islam--Surrender, submission, the name eventually applied to the religion

of the Qur'an. (Glossary, p.217).

 

Muhammad (Prophet For Our Time)

Chapter 2, 'Jahiliyyah', p. 80-84

Karen Armstrong

Harper Perennial - London, New York, Toronto and Sydney

ISBN-13 978-0-00-723248-2

ISBN-10 0-00-723248-9

 

Notes:

 

[60] Izutsu, 'Ethico-Religious Concepts', 28.

 

[61] Ibid., 68-69, Qur'an 14:47, 39:37, 15:79, 30:47, 44:16.

 

[62] Qur'an 90:13-17.

 

[63] Qur'an 25:63, Asad translation.

 

[64] Qur'an 111. This is the only occasion when the Qur'an mentions one of

Muhammad's enemies by name.

 

[65] Ibn Ishaq, 'Sirat Rasul Allah', 183-4 in Guillaume, 'Life of Muhammad',

130-31.

 

[66] Ibid., in Guillaume, 'Life of Muhammad', 132.

 

[67] Ibn Ishaq, 'Sirat Rasul Allah', 227, in Guillaume, 'Life of Muhammad', 157.

 

[68] Ibid., 228, in Guillaume, 'Life of Muhammad', 158.