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In
spite of his noble standing among the Quraysh, Abu Talib, an
uncle of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), was
quite poor. He had a large family and did not have enough
means to support them adequately. His poverty-stricken
situation became much worse when a severe drought hit the
Arabian Peninsula. The drought destroyed vegetation and
livestock and, it is said, people were driven to eat bones
in the struggle for survival.
It
was during this time of drought and before his call to
prophethood, that Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)
said to his uncle Al-`Abbas, “Your brother Abu Talib has a
large family. People, as you see, have been afflicted by
this hardship. Let us go to Abu Talib and ease his burden by
taking over responsibility for some of his sons. I will take
one of his sons and you can take another and we will look
after them.”
The
suggestion was welcomed by Al-`Abbas, and together they went
to Abu Talib and said to him, “We want to ease some of the
burden of your family until such time as this distressing
period has gone.” Abu Talib agreed.
“If
you allow me to keep `Aqeel (one of his sons older than
`Ali), then you may do whatever you like,” he said.
Accordingly,
Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) took `Ali into
his household and Al-`Abbas took Ja`far into his. Ja`far had
a very close resemblance to the Prophet. It is said there
were five men from the Hashim clan who resembled the Prophet
so much, they were often mistaken for him. They were Abu
Sufyan ibn Al-Harith and Qutham ibn Al-`Abbas, his cousins;
As-Sa’ib ibn `Ubayd, the grandfather of Imam Ash-Shafi`i;
Al-Hasan ibn `Ali, the grandson of the Prophet, who
resembled him most of all; and Ja`far ibn Abi Talib.
Ja`far
stayed with his uncle Al-`Abbas until he was a young man.
Then he married Asma’ bint `Umays, a half sister of
Maymunah who was later to become a wife of the Prophet.
After his marriage, Ja`far went to live on his own. He and
his wife were among the first persons to accept Islam. He
became a Muslim at the hands of Abu Bakr As-Siddiq (may
Allah be pleased with him).
The
young Ja`far and his wife were devoted followers of Islam.
They bore the harsh treatment and the persecution of the
Quraysh with patience and steadfastness because they both
realized that the road to Paradise was strewn with thorns
and paved with pain and hardship.
The
Quraysh made life intolerable for them both and for their
brethren in faith. They tried to obstruct them from
performing the duties and rites of Islam. They prevented
them from tasting the full sweetness of worship undisturbed.
The Quraysh waylaid them at every turn and severely
restricted their freedom of movement.
Ja`far
eventually went to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon
him) and sought permission for himself and a small group of
the Companions, including his wife, to make hijrah to the
land of Abyssinia. The Prophet gave his permission,
though it was so painful, indeed, to see these pure and
righteous souls forced to leave their homes and the familiar
and cherished scenes and memories of their childhood and
youth, not for any crime but only because they said “Our
Lord is One. Allah is our Lord.”
The
group of emigrants left Makkah bound for the land of
Abyssinia. Leading them was Ja`far ibn Abi Talib. Soon they
settled down in this new land under the care and protection
of the Negus, the just and righteous ruler of Abyssinia. For
the first time since they had become Muslims, they savored
the taste of freedom and security and enjoyed the sweetness
of worship undisturbed.
When
the Quraysh learned of the departure of the small group of
Muslims and the peaceful life they enjoyed under the
protection of the Negus, they made plans to secure their
extradition and return to the great prison that was Makkah.
They sent two of their most formidable men, `Amr ibn Al-`Aas
and `Abdullah ibn Abi Rabi`ah, to accomplish this task and
loaded them with valuable and sought after presents for the
Negus and his bishops.
In
Abyssinia, the two Quraysh emissaries first presented their
gifts to the bishops and said to each of them, “There are
some wicked young people moving about freely in the king’s
land. They have attacked the religion of their forefathers
and caused disunity among their people. When we speak to the
king about them, advise him to surrender them to us without
his asking them about their religion. The respected leaders
of their own people are more aware of them and know better
what they believe.”
The
bishops agreed.
`Amr
and `Abdullah then went to the Negus himself and presented
him with gifts, which he greatly admired. They said to him,
“O King, there is a group of evil persons from among our
youth who have escaped to your kingdom. They practice a
religion which neither we nor you know. They have forsaken
our religion and have not entered into your religion. The
respected leaders of their people—from among their own
parents and uncles and from their own clans—have sent us
to you to request you to return them. They know best what
trouble they have caused.”
The
Negus looked towards his bishops, who said, “They speak
the truth, O King. Their own people know them better and are
better acquainted with what they have done. Send them back
so that they themselves might judge them.”
The
Negus was quite angry with this suggestion and said, “No,
by God, I won’t surrender them to anyone until I myself
call them and question them about what they have been
accused. If what these two men have said is true, then I
will hand them over to you. If, however, it is not so, then
I shall protect them so long as they desire to remain under
my protection.”
The
Negus then summoned the Muslims to meet him. Before going,
they consulted with one another as a group and agreed that
Ja`far ibn Abi Talib and no one else should speak on their
behalf.
In
the court of the Negus, the bishops, dressed in green
surplices and impressive headgear, were seated on his right
and on his left. The Qurayshi emissaries were also seated
when the Muslims entered and took their seats.
The
Negus turned to them and asked, “What is this religion
which you have introduced for yourself and which has served
to cut you off from the religion of your people? You also
did not enter my religion nor the religion of any other
community.”
Ja`far
ibn Abi Talib then advanced and made a speech that was
moving and eloquent and which is still one of the most
compelling descriptions of Islam, the appeal of the noble
Prophet, and the condition of Makkan society at the time. He
said, “O King, we were a people in a state of ignorance
and immorality, worshiping idols and eating the flesh of
dead animals, committing all sorts of abomination and
shameful deeds, breaking the ties of kinship, treating
guests badly, and the strong among us exploited the weak. We
remained in this state until Allah sent us a Prophet, one of
our own people whose lineage, truthfulness, trustworthiness
and integrity were well-known to us. He called us to worship
Allah alone and to renounce the stones and the idols which
we and our ancestors used to worship besides Allah.
“He
commanded us to speak the truth, to honor our promises, to
be kind to our relations, to be helpful to our neighbors, to
cease all forbidden acts, to abstain from bloodshed, to
avoid obscenities and false witness, not to appropriate an
orphan’s property nor slander chaste women.
“He
ordered us to worship Allah alone and not to associate
anything with Him, to uphold salah (Prayer), to give
zakah (obligatory alms) and fast in the month of Ramadan.
“We
believed in him and what he brought to us from Allah and we
follow him in what he has asked us to do and we keep away
from what he forbade us from doing.
“Thereupon,
O King, our people attacked us, visited the severest
punishment on us to make us renounce our religion and take
us back to the old immorality and the worship of idols.
“They
oppressed us, made life intolerable for us, and obstructed
us from observing our religion. So we left for your country,
choosing you before anyone else, desiring your protection
and hoping to live in justice and in peace in your midst.”
The
Negus was impressed and was eager to hear more. He asked
Ja`far, “Do you have with you something of what your
Prophet brought concerning God?”
“Yes,”
replied Ja`far.
“Then
read it to me,” requested the Negus. Ja`far, in his rich,
melodious voice recited for him the first portion of Surat
Maryam, which deals with the story of Jesus and his mother
Mary.
On
hearing the words of the Qur’an, the Negus was moved to
tears. To the Muslims, he said, “The message of your
Prophet and that of Jesus came from the same source.”
To
`Amr and his companion, he said, “Go! For, by God, I will
never surrender them to you.”
That,
however, was not the end of the matter. `Amr made up his
mind to go to the king the following day, as he himself told
“to mention something about the Muslims’ belief which
will certainly fill his heart with anger and make him detest
them.” On the morrow, `Amr went to the Negus and said,
“O King, these people to whom you have given refuge and
whom you protect say something terrible about Jesus the son
of Mary. Send for them and ask them what they say about
him.”
The
Negus summoned the Muslims once more and Ja`far acted as
their spokesman. The Negus put the question, “What do you
say about Jesus, the son of Mary?”
“Regarding
him, we only say what has been revealed to our Prophet,”
replied Ja`far.
“And
what is that?” enquired the Negus.
“Our
prophet says that Jesus is the servant of Allah and His
prophet. He is a spirit from Allah, and a word cast forth to
Mary the Virgin by Him Almighty.”
The
Negus was obviously excited by this reply and exclaimed,
“By God, Jesus the son of Mary was exactly as your prophet
has described him.”
The
bishops around the Negus grunted in disgust at what they had
heard and were reprimanded by the Negus. He turned to the
Muslims and said, “Go, for you are safe and secure.
Whoever obstructs you will pay for it and whoever opposes
you will be punished. For, by God, I would rather not have a
mountain of gold than that anyone of you should come to any
harm.”
Turning
to `Amr and his companion, he instructed his attendants,
“Return their gifts to these two men. I have no need of
them.”
`Amr
and his companion left broken and frustrated. The Muslims
stayed on in the land of the Negus, who proved to be most
generous and kind to his guests.
Ja`far
and his wife Asma’ spent about 10 years in Abyssinia,
which became a second home for them. There Asma’ gave
birth to three children whom they named `Abdullah, Muhammad
and `Awn. Their second child was possibly the first child in
the history of the Muslim Ummah to be given the name
Muhammad after the noble Prophet (peace and blessings be
upon him).
In
AH 7 Ja`far and his family left Abyssinia with a group of
Muslims and headed for Madinah. When they arrived the
Prophet was just returning from the successful conquest of
Khaybar. He was so overjoyed at meeting Ja`far that he said,
“I do not know what fills me with more happiness, the
conquest of Khaybar or the coming of Ja`far.”
The
Muslims and especially the poor among them were just as
happy with the return of Ja`far as the Prophet was. Ja`far
quickly became known as a person who was much concerned for
the welfare of the poor and indigent. For this he was
nicknamed the Father of the Poor. Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be
pleased with him) said, “The best of men towards us
indigent folk was Ja`far ibn Abi Talib. He would pass by us
on his way home and give us whatever food he had. Even if
his own food had run out, he would send us a pot in which he
had placed some butterfat and nothing more. We would open it
and lick it clean.”
Hence,
after long and painful years of parting, the eyes of Ja`far
finally saw the features of the beloved Prophet’s face,
and he eventually reunited with his fellow Muslims in their
new community of Madinah to undertake a new episode of
struggle and to strive in the noble cause of Allah.
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