History of Islam

The Commercial Position

Located in a rough and dry territory, the city of Mecca lacked agricultural or other productive means of life. In order to survive, its people had to engage in trades, yet extremely limited.[^190] Non-Arab merchants used to carry their merchandise to either buy or sell inside the city or in the seasonal markets of the Arabian Peninsula. This continued until the reign of Hashim, the Holy Prophet's great grandfather, who entered into a treaty with the Roman Empire, according to which the Meccan traders could freely enter this country.[^191]

He had a contract with the tribes on the way to Damascus to protect the Meccan merchants on their journey.[^192] In return, he had to carry their merchandise to Damascus free of charge.[^193] His brothers, `Abd Shams, Nawfal, and al-Muttalib, had similar contracts with the governor of Ethiopia and the kings of Iran[^194] and Yemen.[^195]

Upon achieving the security of routes, Hashim established the trade route between Yemen and Damascus[^196] passing through Mecca which was between these two trade-centers.[^197] In this way, the trade of Quraysh outside the country was established.[^198] Since then, Meccan merchants, besides partaking in seasonal markets, such as `Ukaz, Dhu’l-Majaz, and al-Majannah, made their journey to Yemen and Ethiopia in winter and to Damascus and Gaza in summer. In this way, they could buy silky cloths, hides and other merchandise which had come from India or China into Yemen and take them to Mecca through the Arabian lands parallel to the Red Sea[^199] to take them again to Gaza, Jerusalem, Damascus and the ports on the Mediterranean.

They could then buy wheat, oil, olives, wood and other produce from Damascus. They could also enter Ethiopia, through the Red Sea and Jeddah Port, which is located eight hundred kilometers away from Mecca. In this way, they could take their local merchandise from one place to another.[^200]

The establishment of such a merchant route changed the city of Mecca into a lucrative center for trade and had a tremendous effect on the life of its people. God mentions this route as a means for prosperity for the people of Quraysh:

For the protection of the Quraysh—their protection during their trading caravans in the winter and the summer; so, let them serve the Lord to this house, Who feeds them against hunger and gives them security against fear. (106:1-4)

The Holy Kaaba

The very existence of the Kaaba was considered a significant factor for the development of the city and for the prosperity of its people. This is because the Arabs used to arrive to this city twice for the observance of Hajj ceremonies. People of Quraysh, being responsible sponsors for the Kaaba’s affairs, provided the pilgrims with water and food. Trade transactions were carried out between the pilgrims and the Meccan merchants during the Hajj ceremonies.[^201] These two factors played major roles in the trade prosperity of the city.

Of course, the sanctity of Mecca which brought forth the required security for the trade transactions was of utmost importance for the trade prosperity of Mecca. This fact is mentioned by Allah:

And they say: If we follow the guidance with you, we shall be carried off from our country. What! Have We not settled them in a safe, sacred territory to which fruits of every kind shall be drawn-sustenance from Us? But most of them do not know. (38:57)

Upon the settlement of his wife and child beside the Kaaba, Prophet Abraham asked his God for such an asset:

O Our Lord! Surely, I have settled a part of my offspring in a valley unproductive of fruit near Thy Sacred House, our Lord! That they may keep up prayer; therefore make the hearts of some people yearn towards them and provide them either fruits; haply they may be grateful. (14:37)

My Lord, make it a secure town and provide its people with fruits, such of them as believe in Allah and the last day. (2:126)

Trade and Custodianship of Quraysh

The two factors of trade and the existence of the Kaaba, which had played their roles in the prosperity of Mecca, had their role in increasing the power of the people of Quraysh in Mecca, because they had the trade and religious initiatives in their hands:

(1) People of Quraysh could amass tremendous amounts of wealth thorough trade. The share of one of these traders in one caravan was more than thirty thousand Dinars.[^202] The Quraysh nobles had a lot of gardens.[^203] in the summer quarters of ta’if, which, in good weather, was called a part of Damascus.[^204] Al-`Abbas ibn `Abd al-Muttalib had a vineyard in ta’if the produce of which was carried to Mecca to be made wine.[^205] He was one of the great usurers of Mecca.

[^206] Upon his death, his body was enshrouded in two pieces of Yemeni cloth which cost the value of five thousand grams of gold.[^207] It is said his daughter, Hind, manumitted forty slaves in one day.[^208] Al-Walid ibn Mughirah, the elder chief of the Banu-Makhzum, had a great wealth and a great number of children; he was quite famous[^209] and later reprimanded by the Holy Qur'an because of his false pride and ambition.[^210] The wealth of `Abdullah ibn Jad`an Tamimi and his luxurious parties were considered fabulous.

[^211] Poets composed eulogies to receive prizes.[^212] A poet likened him to Caesar.[^213] It is said that at one tribal war, he gave a thousand camels to a thousand warriors[^214] and armed a hundred warriors at his cost.[^215] He was the custodian and seller of female slaves.[^216] He used to drink out of golden ware.[^217] Upon the seizure of Mecca and when he was on the way to the Battle of Hunayn, the Holy Prophets borrowed one hundred sets of shields and the required ammunitions from safwan ibn Umayyah, one of the infidels of Mecca.[^218]

(2) Quraysh, who had taken away the position of the Kaaba’s custodianship from Quza`ah[^219] since the time of Qusayy, the fourth generation away from the Holy Prophet, had distributed among the chiefs of the different Quraysh clans the different responsibilities related to the Kaaba, such as watering the pilgrims, guest-affairs, curtain-management and services of the Kaaba; they had in this way secured a religious position for itself. Besides, the Quraysh had distributed among the heads of its different branches the municipal affairs, such as the control of the reception of blood-money and the like.[^220]

Quraysh's Power and Influences

Quraysh, who was a small, insignificant and impoverished tribe at the southern part of Hijaz and later became a strong and famous tribe due to its religious and economic power, turned out to be superior to other tribes in honesty, decency and creditability. In the words of contemporary historians, the Quraysh had some special privileges among other Arab tribes in the same way that priests had special privileges among Christians on those days.[^221]

After the event of the Elephant Army and the defeat of Abrahah, the significance of the people of Quraysh raised drastically among the other tribes.[^222] This was due to the fact that its members were the custodians of the Kaaba. They took advantage of this event in their own benefit and called themselves al-allah (Family of Allah), jiran allah (the neighbors of Allah) and sukkan haram allah (Inhabitants of Allah’s Precinct).[^223] In this way, they could strengthen their religious basis and due to their power, they showed inclination towards corruption and monopoly.[^224] This sense of power caused them to impose some new regulations over other tribes.

Quraysh had the special privilege of marrying any daughter from other tribes with the condition that they should accept the religious innovations that they had fabricated concerning the special Hajj ceremonies.[^225] They received taxes from the pilgrims who would enter Mecca,[^226] and called such tributes as special privileges of Quraysh.[^227] They had monopolized the management of the Hajj ceremonies and forced the pilgrims to follow their regulations.

This was so severe that the pilgrims' movement from Mina or participation in stone-throwing was authorized by special order of Quraysh.[^228] Quraysh even forced non-Meccan pilgrims to either buy their costumes or carry out the ceremonies naked. These pilgrims had to throw away their costumes if they refused to buy them from the Quraysh.[^229] This would force them to buy their costumes from the Quraysh, anyhow.[^230] In the ninth year of Hegira, in which the Holy Prophet sent Imam `Ali to Mecca to take part in the ceremony of acquaintance, one of the items of `Ali's resolution was the prohibition of performing Hajj naked.[^231]

Recognition of the Quraysh's power and influence is necessary in order to find out the problems that the Holy Prophet had to face and what powerful enemy he had to confront. With few sources of power that the Holy Prophet had at his disposal, he had to struggle against a powerful opponent.

[^1] Husayn Qarachanlu, Haramayn Sharifayn, pp. 9.

[^2] This equals one third of Europe, six times the area of France, nine times the total areas of west Germany and East Germany put together, ten tines the area of Italy, eighty times the area of Switzer land, and twice the area of Iran.

[^3] Cosmological Institution, the cosmology of countries, pp. 205.

[^4] Phillip Khalil Hitti, History of the Arabs.

[^5] `Ali Akbar Fayyaz, Tarikh Islam, pp. 2; Alber Male and Joel Isaac, History of the Middle Ages up to the One-Hundred Year War, pp. 95.

[^6] Phillip Hitti, Op cit, pp. 24.

[^7] Al-Maqdisi, a Muslim scientist of the fourth century, considers the Arabian Peninsula to contain four large section: Hijaz, Yemen, Oman and Hajr; see Ahsan al-Taqasim fi Ma`rifat al-Aqalim, pp. 102. However, others state that it includes five sections: Tihamah, Hijaz, Najd, Yemen and `Aruz; see Abu’l-Fida, Taqwim al-Buldan, pp. 104; Yaqut al-Hamawi, Mu`jam al-Buldan, pp. 101 & 214; Shukri al-alusi al-Baghdadi, Bulugh al-Irab fi Ma`rifat Ahwal al-`Arab, 1:187; Jawad `Ali, al-Mufassal fi Tarikh al-`Arab Qabl al-Islam, 1:167.

There are other subdivisions, the descriptions of which are not useful now; see Gustav Le Bon: The Civilization of Islam and Arabs, pp. 31.

[^8] Yahya Nuri, Islam wa `Aqa'id wa ara' Bashari (Islam, Doctrines and Human Beliefs), pp. 231-234.

[^9] Sayyid Ja`far Shahidi, Tarikh Tahlili Islam, pp. 3.

[^10] Ahmad Husayn Sharaf al-Din, al-Yaman `Ibr al-Tarikh (The Yemen in History), pp. 53.

[^11] Gustav Le Bon: The Civilization Of Islam And Arabs, pp. 92.

[^12] Mahmud Shukri Al-alusi al-Baghdadi, Bulugh al-Irab fi Ma`rifat Ahwal al-`Arab, 1:204.

[^13] Georgi Zaydan, the History of the Islamic Civilization, pp. 3.

[^14] Al-Mas`udi, Muruj al-Dhahab wa Ma`adin al-Jawhar, 2:89, pp. 132.

[^15] The Ma'rib Dam is located 192 Kilometers on the eastern section of Sana’a, the present capital of Yemen.

[^16] For further knowledge concerning the features of the scientific plan for this dam, see Dictionary of the Qur’anic Tales by sadr Balaghi, pp. 82-88; Ahmad Husayn Sharaf al-Din, al-Yaman `Ibr al-Tarikh, pp. 122-132.

[^17] Georgie Zaydan, the History of the Islamic Civilization, 1:11.

[^18] Will Durant, the History of Civilization, 1: 341.

[^19] Phillip Hitti, History of the Arabs, pp. 64; Gustav Le Bon, The Civilization of Islam and the Arabs, pp. 94; Ahmad Husayn Sharaf al-Din, al-Yaman `Ibr al-Tarikh, pp. 105; al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab, 1:203.

[^20] Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, The Political History of Islam 1:32.

[^21] Hamzah Isfahani, Tarikh Muluk al-Arz wa’l-Anbiya' (the History of the Prophets and the Kings), pp. 120 & 132.

[^22] Abu-Rayhan al-Bayruni: Al-athar al-Baqiyah, pp. 181.

[^23] Mu`jam al-Buldan 7:355.

[^24] Tubba` (plural of which is Tababi`ah) was the title of the Himyarite Kings in Yemen. These were two classes: the first class included the kings of Saba and Ridan who rules from 115 BC to 275 AD. The second class included the kings of Saba, Ridan, Hazramawt and Shahr who ruled from 275 to 533 AD: Ahmad Husayn Sharaf al-Din, Al-Yaman `Ibr al-Tarikh, pp. 90-97.

[^25] Hamzah Isfahani, The History of the Prophets and Kings, pp. 99, 119; Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, the Political History of Islam, pp. 44; Abu-Rayhan al-Bayruni, al-athar al-Baqiyah, pp. 181,183.

[^26] Carl Brockleman, the History of Nations and Islamic States, pp. 5.

[^27] Georgie Zaydan, History Of The Islamic Civilization 1:15.

[^28] Gustav Le Bon, History Of The Islamic Civilization 1:88.

[^29] Phillip Hitti, History of the Arabs, pp. 14.

[^30] Phillip Hitti, History of the Arabs, pp. 33-35.

[^31] Gustav Le Bon, History Of The Islamic Civilization 1:65; Will Durant, The Story Of Civilization; The Age of Faith 4:201.

[^32] Ahmad Amin, Fajr al-Islam, pp. 46.

[^33] Ibid, pp. 33-34. al-Nu`man ibn al-Mundhir, king of al-Hirah, in reply to Khosrow the Persian king who asked him why the Arab nation does not live under a unified governmental system, answered, “Other nations who feel weak and fear the enemy's attacks submit their control under one family, submitting to them their affairs. But all the Arabs want to be kings and hate paying taxes or tributes.” See al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab… 1:150.

[^34] Ahmad Amin, Fajr al-Islam, pp. 225; `Abd al-Mun`im Majid: al-Tarikh al-Siyasi li’l-Dawlah al-`Arabiyyah (Political History of the Arab State), pp. 48.

[^35] Karl Brockelman, History Of The Islamic States And Peoples.

[^36] He was also called ra'is (chief), amir (prince), and sayyid (master). See `Abd al-Mun`im Majid, al-Tarikh al-Siyasi li’l-Dawlah al-`Arabiyyah, pp. 49.

[^37] `Abd al-Mun`im Majid, al-Tarikh al-Siyasi li’l-Dawlah al-`Arabiyyah, pp. 49.

[^38] Al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab…1:187.

[^39] Phillip Hitti, The Arab History, pp. 39.

[^40] Phillip Hitti, The Arab History, pp. 38.

[^41] Will Durant, Op cit, 4:200.

[^42] Ahmad Amin, Op cit, pp. 10.

[^43] Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, The Political History of Islam 1:37-8.

[^44] Shaykh al-saduq, Thawab al-A`mal wa `Iqab al-A`mal, pp. 263; Shaykh al-Kulayni, al-Usul min al-Kafi, 2:308.

[^45] Sunan Abi-Dawud, Ch. Al-Adab, S. fi al-`Asabiyyah, pp. 332, H. 512.

[^46] sahih al-Bukhari, Ch. Al-Mazalim, 2:66; Musnad Ahmad, 3:201.

[^47] Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, the Political History of Islam, pp. 39.

[^48] Brockleman, op cit, pp. 6-7.

[^49] Al-Nuwayri, Nihayat al-Irab fi Funun al-Adab 6:67.

[^50] Al-alusi, op cit, 1:281.

[^51] Sayyid Muhammad Husayn tabataba'i, al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur'an 30:353; al-alusi, op cit, 1:279.

[^52] For instance, if one's father was Arab, but his mother was non-Arab, he was insultingly referred to as hajin, which indicated the concept of inferiority; in the reverse situation, he used to be called mudharra`. Hajin was deprived of inheritance. See Ibn `Abd Rabbih al-Andalusi, al-`Iqd al-Farid 6:129. A hajin male had to marry a woman of his own standing. See Muhammad ibn Habib, al-Muhabbar, pp. 310; al-Shahristani, al-Milal wa’l-Nihal, pp. 254.

In Islam, when he was asked about the blood-money of a hajin, the Holy Prophet replied, “The blood money of all followers of Islam is the same.” See Ibn Shahrashub, al-Manaqib 1:113.

[^53] Jawad `Ali, al-Mufassal fi Tarikh al-`Arab Qabl al-Islam 1:493; Shawqi ®ayf, Tarikh al-Adab al-`Arabi, al-`Asr al-Jahili, pp. 55.

[^54] Al-alusi, op cit, 1:149. At the beginning of Islam, `Umar Ibn al-Khattab, who was strongly influenced by this kind of thinking, and who showed his dissatisfaction towards the Iraqi Nabataean who used to refer to their locations in their names, told them: Always remember your familial bonds and parentage and stop being like the Iraqi Nabataean who, when asked about their families, would refer to their place of birth or to the location of their residence. See Muqaddimat Ibn Khaldun, pp. 162; Al-Andalusi, op cit, 3:312.

[^55] Bulugh al-Irab… 3:182; also refer to al-Mufassal fi Tarikh al-`Arab Qabl al-Islam 1:466-4667.

[^56] On the word of a narration reported from Imam al-sadiq (a.s) and some books of exegesis of the Holy Qur'an, the Arabic word qaba'il mentioned in the aforementioned holy verse refers to the Arab tribes, while the word shu`ub refers to the non-Arabs. (See al-tabrisi, Majma` al-Bayan fi Tafsir al-Qur'an, Exegesis of Surah al-Hujurat, verse 13)

[^57] Shaykh al-Kulayni, al-Rawzah min al-Kafi, pp. 246; al-Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar 21:137-8; Sirat Ibn Husham 4:54.

[^58] Ibn Shu`bah al-Harrani: Tuhaf al-`Uqul, pp. 34.

[^59] Shaykh al-Kulayni, op cit, p. 181.

[^60] Muhammad Ahmad Jad al-Mawla Bek, `Ali Muhammad al-Bajjawi, Muhammad Abu’l-Fazl Ibrahim: Ayyam al-`Arab fi al-Jahiliyyah, pp. 142-168; Ibn al-Athir: al-Kamil fi’l-Tarikh 1:523-539.

[^61] Ibn Husham: Sirat al-Nabi 1:307; Yaqut al-Hamawi: Mu`jam al-Buldan 1:268.

Ibn al-Athir (in al-Kamil fi’l-Tarikh 1:566-582) and Jad al-Mawla Beck (in Ayyam al-`Arab pp. 246-277) consider the owner of the two horses to be one person namely, Qays.

[^62] Brockleman, op cit, pp. 8.

[^63] sahih al-Bukhari 8:327-8, H. 893. Similar to this is mentioned in Sunan Abi-Dawud 4:271.

[^64] Gustav Le Bon, op cit, pp. 63,

[^65] Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, op cit, 1:38.

[^66] Muqaddimat Ibn Khaldun 1:285-286.

[^67] Ahmad Amin, op cit, pp. 9; Phillip Hitti, op cit, pp. 35; Hamasat Abi-Tammam, pp. 32, Calcutta: Leisi Publishing House, 1895 AD.

[^68] tabataba'i: al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur'an 9:272.

[^69] By exchanging the names of the months and through postponing and procrastinating the forbidden months, the Arabs were engaged in wars during these months. For this very reason, God said:

“Postponing of the sacred month is only an addition in unbelief, where with those who disbelieve are led astray, violating it one year and keeping it sacred another, that they may agree in numb of months that Allah has made sacred, and thus violate what Allah has made sacred; the evil of their doings is made fair-seeming to them; and Allah does not guide the unbelieving people.”

[^70] Sayyid Muhammad Husayn tabataba’i, Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an, 2:267.

[^71] Abu’l-`Abbas al-Mubarrad: al-Kamil fi al-Lughah wa’l-Adab 1:393. Muhammad ibn Habib, al-Muhabbar, pp. 324.

[^72] Shaykh al-Kulayni, al-Furu` min al-Kafi 6:406.

[^73] tabataba’i, op cit 4:254-258; al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-Manthur 2:131-132; al-Shahristani, al-Milal wa’l-Nihal 2:254; Hasan, Women's Rights in Islam and Europe, pp. 34. The one who married his stepmother after his father’s death was named ®ayzan. (Muhammad ibn Habib, al-Muhabbar, pp. 325) Ibn Qutaybah al-Daynawari has named some these women who married their stepsons upon their husbands’ death (al-Ma`arif, p112.)

[^74] tabataba’i, op cit, 4:258; Tafsir al-tabari 4:207.

[^75] tabataba’i, op cit, 2: 267.

[^76] Shaykh `Abbas al-Qummi, Safinat al-Bihar 1:197; Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj al-Balaghah 13:174; Shaykh al-Kulayni, al-Usul min al-Kafi 18:163; al-Qurtubi, Tafsir Jami` al-Ahkam 19:232.

[^77] Al-Qurtubi, op cit pp. 232.

[^78] Al-Mubarrad, op cit, 1:392; Ibn Abi’l-Hadid op cit, 13:179.

[^79] Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, op cit, 13:174.

[^80] Al-alusi, op cit, 1:324; Tarikh al-Ya`qubi, 2:10.

[^81] Al-alusi, op cit, 3:45; Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah, 1:240.

[^82] Muhammad Abu’l-Fazl Ibrahim, et al, Qisas al-`Arab 2:31, Abu’l-`Abbas al-Mubarrad, op cit, pp. 394.

Al-Farazdaq, a Muslim poet, took pride in his grandfather, sa`sa`ah, for he had objected to burying newborn girls alive. See al-Qurtubi, Tafsir Jami` al-Ahkam, 19:232.

[^83] Abu’l-`Abbas al-Mubarrad, op cit, 1:394.

[^84] Ibn al-Athir, Usd al-Ghabah, 4:220.

It is narrated that Qays ibn `asim converted to Islam and came to the Prophet, saying, “Before Islam, I buried eight of my daughters alive. How could I make up for it now?” The Prophet replied, “Free eight slaves for what you have done.” He said, “I have many camels.” The Prophet replied, “If you wish, you may slaughter eight camels.” See al-Qurtubi, Tafsir Jami` al-Ahkam 19:233.

[^85] Ibn Husham, op cit, 2:75.

[^86] Gustav le Bon, the civilization of Islam and the Arabs, pp. 64-65. Will Durant writes concerning this topic, “The nomad was kind, generous and savage; he was Jealous, miser and traitor; he was and dissolute and conservative. Despite his poverty, he was generous; he faced the world with elegance.” See The Story of Civilization 4:201.

[^87] Ahmad Amin, Fajr al-Islam, pp. 76.

[^88] Phillip Hitti, the Arab History, pp. 33-35.

[^89] Murtaza al-`amili, al-sahih mi Sirat al-Rasul al-A`zam, 1:50-54.

[^90] Mahmud Shukri al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab 2:303.

[^91] For further information for the superstitions of the Arabs before Islam, see Bulugh al-Irab 2:303-367; Ibn Abi’l-Hadid, Sharh Nahj al-Balaghah 19:382-429.

[^92] al-alusi, op cit, 3:182, 223, 261, and 327.

[^93] Muqaddimat Ibn Khaldun 2:1034.

[^94] Futuh al-Buldan, pp. 457-454.

[^95] Will Durant, the Story of Civilization 4:202.

[^96] Al-Mu`allaqat al-Sab`ah.

[^97] Concerning these marts, see Bulugh al-Irab 2:264-270.

[^98] Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, the political History of Islam 1:24.

[^99] Fajr al-Islam, pp. 29.

[^100] The Jews mostly lived in Yathrib, Fadak and Tayma. A few of them lived in ta’if. However, there is no indication of any Jew population in Mecca.

[^101] Georgi Zaydan, the History of the Islamic civilization, 1:16.

[^102] sahih al-Bukhari 9:136.

[^103] Tafsir al-tabari 4:25; Zahiyah Qaddurah, Al-Shu`ubiyyah, pp. 24; Ahmad Amin, ²uhr al-Islam 1:18.

[^104] Qisas al-`Arab 2:358; Ibn Kathir, al-Bidayah wa’l-Nihayah 3:144.

[^105] al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab 1:311-313; Muhammad Ibn `Abd-Rabbih, al-`Iqd al-Farid 2:20; Ibn Qutaybah, al-Ma`arif, 608.

[^106] Ahmad Amin, ²uhr al-Islam 1:19.

[^107] The direct reason for this war was the following: Khosrow willed to marry the daughter of al-Nu`man ibn al-Mundhir, the king of al-Hirah. Upon his refusal, he was called to the Iranian court and was put in prison where he died. Khosrow ordered Hani ibn Mas`ud al-Shaybani to submit al-Nu`man’s wealth to him. He, however, refused to do so. Later, Khosrow dispatched an army to fight Banu-Shayban. Khosrow lost that war. See Ibn al-Athir, al-Kamil fi’l-Tarikh 1:485-484; al-Maqdisi: al-Bad’ wa’l-Tarikh 3:26.

[^108] Ahmad Amin, ²uhr al-Islam 1:19; Mas`udi, al-Tanbih wa’l-Ishraf, pp. 209; Jalal al-Din Homayi, Shu`ubiyyah, pp. 11-12.

[^109] Jawad `Ali, al-Mufassal 1:41-42.

[^110] `Umar Farrukh, sadr al-Islam wa’l-Dawlah al-Umawiyyah, pp. 39.

[^111] tabataba’i, Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an 4:151-155; Ahmad Amin, Fajr al-Islam, pp. 74-78; al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab 1:15-18; Shawqi ®ayf, Tarikh al-Adab al-`Arabi 1:39.

Confirming this piece of information, jahl is the opposite of hikmah (wisdom) according to some narrations reported in reliable reference books like al-Kafi.

[^112] Jawad `Ali says: “In my view, jahiliyyah is stemmed from stupidity, pride, anger, arrogance and stubbornness towards God's commands. These features are strongly condemned by Islam. In our days, we rebuke a stupid person who utters taboo or nasty words by the following expression: Go away, you ignorant and silly one. This does not mean that he is illiterate.” See al-Mufassal, 1:40.

[^113] Nahj al-Balaghah, Sermon 95.

[^114] Hanif (pl. Hunafa') is one following the religion of Prophet Abraham. See tabarsi, Majma` al-Bayan 1:216.

[^115] Muhammad Ibn Habib, al-Muhabbar, pp. 171.

[^116] Mas`udi, Muruj al-Dhahab 1:60-68; Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:237; Ibn Kathir, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:122-165; Muhammad Ibn Ishaq, al-Maghazi, pp. 115-116; Muhammad Ibn Habib, al-Munammaq fi Akhbar Quraysh, pp. 152-153; Muhammad Ibrahim ayati, the History of the Prophet of Islam, pp. 13-19.

[^117] Ibn Kathir, op cit, pp. 156; Qisas al-`Arab 1:72.

[^118] Jawad `Ali, al-Mufassal 6:449. Husayn tabataba’i, Committing Treasons In Preparing Historical Accounts 1:120; Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:237.

[^119] Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, The Political History Of Islam 1:64.

2 Ibid, pp. 64; Shihab al-Din al-Abshahi, al-Mustatraf fi kulli fannin Mustazraf 2:88; Ibn Qutaybah, al-Ma`arif, pp. 621; al-Himyari, al-Hur al-`«n, pp. 136.

3 `Uthman ibn Huwayrith and Waraqah ibn Nawfal, belonging to the tribe of Banu-Asad, were following Hanifiyyah. See Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 1:225.

[^121] Ahmad Amin, Fajr Al-Islam, pp. 27.

[^122] Tarikh al-`Arab, pp. 78. Some historians ascribe the indoctrination and introduction of Christianity into Yemen to a Syrian saint called Faymiyin. See Ibn Husham, op cit, 1:32-35; Yaqut al-Hamawi, Mu`jam al-Buldan 5:266. However, this seems to be a myth since it is not in agreement with what is narrated by Hetti.

[^123] Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 1:224.

[^124] Ahmad Amin, op cit, pp. 26.

[^125] Some exegetes of the Holy Qur'an say that the verses 4-9 of Surah al-Buruj were revealed in connection with the slaughter of the Christians. This might be a referent of those verses. See al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an 20:251-257:

Cursed be the makers of the pit, of the fire kept burning with fuel, when they sat by it. And they were witnesses of what they did with the believers. And they did not take vengeance on them for aught except that they believed in Allah, the Mighty, the praised. Whose is the Kingdom of the heavens and the earth, and Allah is a Witness of all things (Qur’an 85: 8-9).

[^126] Ahmad Amin, op cit, pp. 18,25, 26, 28.

[^127] Qisas al-`Arab 1:73; Ahmad Amin, op cit, pp. 27.

[^128] Qur’an 5:18, 72, 73; 4:171; 9:30; 5:82.

[^129] Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an 3:228, 233.

[^130] In the words of Yaqut al-Hamawi, Tayma' was a small city between Syria and Wadi al-Qura. See Mu`jam al-Buldan 2:67. Wadi al-Qura is situated between Medina and Syria; it was one of the provinces of Medina. Thus, Tayma' was located between Medina and Syria. Al-Maqdisi, a scholar of the fourth century, writes:

“Tayma' is an ancient city located in a wide-spread land, full of palm trees, with a lot of orchards and numerous rivers, with a spring of limpid water, which runs from an iron-grid into the pond and then runs into the orchards. There are some fresh water wells therein. However, most of them are ruined.” See Ahsan al-Taqasim.

[^131] Fadak is a village of two or three day distance away from Medina. Mu`jam al-Buldan 4:238.

[^132] Khaybar is a region 96 miles north of Medina; it included seven strongholds with numerous farmlands and palm-groves. (Mu`jam al-Buldan 2:404). The distance between Khaybar and Medina is recorded with different numbers. (Taqwim al-Buldan, pp. 123).

[^133] Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, op cit, pp. 64.

[^134] al-Buladhari, Futuh al-Buldan, pp. 67.

[^135] Ahmad Amin, Fajr al-Islam, pp. 24.

[^136] Ibn Qutaybah, al-Ma`arif, pp. 621; al-Hur al-`«n, pp. 136.

[^137] Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 1:257.

[^138] Ahmad Amin, op cot, pp. 23, 24, 37; Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:37. Yaqut al-Hamawi, Mu`jam al-Buldan 5:266.

[^139] Al-athar al-Baqiyah, pp. 294-295.

[^140] Harran was a big city between the Tigris and Euphrates; today, it is a ruined village. At the Advent of Islam, it was a prosperous city in which famous scientists used to live. See Mu`jam al-Buldan 3:235-236; Taqwim al-Buldan, pp. 303, 307, 309; Muhammad Mu`in, Farhang Farsi 5:457.

[^141] tabataba’i, Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an 10:279.

[^142] Qur’an 2:62; 5:69; 22:17.

[^143] They live at the shores of the Karun River, Ahwaz, Khorramshahr, Abadan, Shadigan, and Dasht Mishan.

[^144] They live at the shores of the Tigris and Euphrates in Baghdad, Hillah, Nasiriyyah, `Imarah, Kut, Diyala, Kirkuk, Mosul, Ramadi, Sulaymaniyyah and Karbala'. For the derivation of the word sabi'i, whether it is Arabic or Hebrew, and for its meaning, see al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab 2:223-228; Yahya Nuri, Islam And Human Ideas, pp. 431-432; Shahristani, al-Milal wa’l-Nihal 1:230, 2:5.

[^145] Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 1:226.

[^146] Ahmad Amin, Fajr al-Islam, pp. 108; Dawud Ilhami, Iran and Islam, pp. 392. Having referred to the fact that Manicheans came to be called zanadiqah due to their following of zand, al-Bayruni writes: “The Manicheans and the Batiniyyah (Esotericists) are figuratively termed zanadiqah in Islam. This is because these two groups are similar to Mazdakids in ascribing certain traits and features to God.” See al-athar al-Baqiyah, pp. 312. About this topic, `Abd al-Husayn Zarrinkub writes, “The word zandiq is derived from the Pahlavi word zandic. At this era, this word was used for the Manicheans and for those who believed in atheism of some sort.

[^147] Shahristani, op cit, pp. 244. An Orientalist says, “If we consider Manichaeism as Zoroastrianism mixed with Christianity, we are closer to the truth than considering Christianity mixed with Zoroastrianism.” See Ahmad Amin, Fajr al-Islam, pp. 104. Concerning Mani and his sect, Manichaeism, see `Abd al-Husayn Zarrinkub, Neither Eastern nor Western but Human, pp. 72-76.

[^148] Ibn Qutaybah, al-Ma`arif, pp. 621; Al-Abshahi, al-Mustatrah 2:88; Ibn Rustah, al-A`laq al-Al-Nafisah, pp. 264; Ahmad Amin, Fajr al-Islam, pp. 108.

Muhammad ibn Habib al-Baghdadi states that the following individuals from Quraysh belonged to this group: Abu-Sufyan, `Aqabah ibn Abi-Mu`it, Ubay ibn Abi-Khalaf, Abu-`Azzah, al-Nazr ibn Harith, Nubayh and Munabbih, sons of al-Hajjaj ibn Amir al-Sahmi, al-`as ibn Wa’il, and al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah al-Makhzumi. See al-Muhabbar, pp. 161.

However, the speeches and sessions held by these individuals carry no single indication of this point. Rather, documents prove that they were idol-worshippers. In his discussions on heresy, `Abd al-Husayn Zarrinkub remarks that the word zandaqah included Materialists as well. This latter group refrained from attributing the events of this world to a Creator. The zanadiqah of Quraysh, among whom were Abu-Sufyan, Ibn Abi-Mu`it, al-Nazr ibn Harith, and al-Walid ibn Mughirah, were Materialists. It is understood from the news and poems related to the chiefs of Quraysh that their heresy stood for rejection of the Creator and disbelief in Resurrection”

[^149] al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab 2:240.

[^150] tabataba’i, Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an 19:49.

[^151] Ibid, pp. 215, 220, 230, 237, 239 and 240; Islam And Man's Ideologies, pp. 295-247.

[^152] tabataba’i op cit 17:393.

[^153] Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:385.

[^154] Husham Ibn Muhammad Kalbi, Kitab al-Asnam, pp. 42.

[^155] tabataba’i, op cit, 2:42.

[^156] tabarsi, Majma` al-Bayan 8:46.

[^157] al-alusi, op cit, 2:232.

[^158] Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:55, 116; al-Azraqi, The History of Mecca 1:55; Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 1:18; Ibn Rustah, al-A`laq al-Nafisah, pp. 51.

[^159] Azraqi, op cit. pp. 57; Mas`udi, Muruj al-Dhahab 2:20.

[^160] Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 1:19, 193; al-Azraqi, op cit, pp. 57.

[^161] An exegesis of the Holy Qur'an states that the holy verse, (…and the faith of your father Abraham,) refers to this meaning. See tabarsi, Majma` al-Bayan 7:97.

[^162] Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 1:224.

[^163] al-Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar 15:170; Husham Kalbi, al-Asnam, pp. 6.

[^164] Al-Hurr al-`amili, Wasa'il al-Shi`ah: 1465; tabarsi, al-Ihtijaj, pp. 189.

[^165] Shahristani, al-Milal wa’l-Nihal 2:257.

[^166] tabataba’i, al-Mizan 9:272.

[^167] Shahristani, op cit, pp. 255; Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 2:12

[^168] al-Azraqi, op cit, 1:88, 100, 101; Mahmud al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab 2:200; al-Sirah al-Halabiyyah 1:16.

[^169] Al-`amaliqah were the children of Prophet Noah. Their grandfather was named `imlaq or `imliq. See Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 2:188; al-Sirah al-Halabiyyah 1:17.

[^170] al-alusi, op cit, 2:201; al-Shahristani, op cit, pp. 243; al-Halabi, op cit, pp. 17; Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 2:224; al-Abshahi, al-Mustatraf 2:29; Kalbi, al-Asnam, pp. 6; Muhammad Ibn Habib, al-Munammaq, pp. 328.

In some records, it is said that he brought Hubal from Iraq. See al-Azraqi, Akhbar Makkah 1:79; Ibn Kathir, al-Bidayah wa’l-Nihayah 2:188.

A report says that the stone of the idol is one of the stones of Ma'zamayn. For this reason, when the Prophet crossed that place, he showed hatred.

See Wasa'il al-Shi`ah by al-Hurr al-`amili 10:36.

[^171] al-Azraqi, op cit, 1:88; Shahristani, op cit, 2:242, 347.

[^172] Ibn Husham, op cit, pp. 79; al-Halabi, op cit, pp. 17; Ibn `Abd al-Barr, al-Isti`ab 1:120; Ibn al-Athir, Usd al-Ghabah 4:390; al-Tustari, al-Awa’il, pp. 217; Ibn Kathir, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:65; al-Azraqi, op cit, pp. 116.

[^173] al-alusi, op cit, 2:200.

[^174] tabataba’i, op cit, 1:272.

[^175] Kalbi, op cit, pp. 32.

[^176] Shaykh al-tusi, al-Amali, pp. 336; al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab 2:211; al-Azraqi, op cit, 1:21; al-Sirah al-Halabiyyah 3:30; al-Mizan 26: 271, based on a narration by Imam al-Riza.

[^177] Qur’an 31:25; 39:38; 43:9; 43:87; 10:3.

[^178] Al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-Manthur 4:23: tabarsi, Majma` al-Bayan 8:460.

[^179] Ibn Kathir, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:7. Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:85.

[^180] Ibn Husham, op cit, pp. 80; Ibn Kathir, op cit, pp. 63; al-Shahristani, al-Milal wa’l-Nihal 2:247. Ibn Kathir, al-Bidayah wa’l-Nihayah 2:88.

[^181] Kalbi, al-Asnam, pp. 13; Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:8; al-alusi, Bulugh al-Irab 2:202.

[^182] Kalbi, op cit, pp. 14.

[^183] al-Azraqi, Akhbar Makkah 1:178, 182; al-alusi, op cit, 1:244; sahih Muslim 18:162.

[^184] tabataba’i, Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an 14:414.

[^185] Azraqi, Akhbar Makkah 1:183; Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:45.

[^186] The Civilization Of Islam And Arab, pp. 138-130.

[^187] Muhammad al-Siba`i, al-Abtal, pp. 9.

[^188] Will Durant, the Story of Civilization 4:197.

[^189] Ibn Wazih, Tarikh al-Ya`qubi 1:215.

[^190] Muhammad Ibn Habib al-Baghdadi, al-Munammaq, pp. 42.

[^191] Ibn Wazih, Ibid, 1:214.

[^192] Op cit, pp. 213.

[^193] Ibn Sa`d, al-tabaqat al-Kubra 1:78.

[^194] Ibn Wazih, Ibid 1:215.

[^195] tabari, Tarikh al-Umam wa’l-Muluk 2:180; Ibn al-Athir, al-Kamil fi’l-Tarikh 2:16.

[^196] tabari, op cit, pp. 180; Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah, 1:143.

[^197] Ahmad Amin, Fajr Al-Islam, pp. 13-14; Shawqi ®ayf, Tarikh al-Adab al-`Arabi 1:49.

[^198] tabari, op cit, 2:180; Ibn al-Athir, op cit, pp. 16.

[^199] Ahmad Amin, op cit, pp. 12; `Abd al-Mun`im Majid, al-Tarikh al-Siyasi li’l-Dawlah al-`Arabiyyah, pp. 79.

[^200] Hasan Ibrahim Hasan, The Political History Of Islam, pp. 56.

[^201] `Abbas Ziryab, Sirat Rasulillah, pp. 66-67.

[^202] Jawad `Ali, al-Mufassal 1:114.

Probably, reference is made to Sa`id ibn al-`as (Abu-Uhayhah) who had the largest share of the caravan of Quraysh that had to encounter the Muslim troops at Well Badr during their return from Damascus. However, al-Waqidi (in al-Maghazi 1:27) does not say it explicitly.

[^203] Phillip Hitti, op cit, pp. 130.

[^204] tabari, op cit 2:221; al-Buladhari, Futuh al-Buldan, pp. 68.

[^205] al-Buladhari, op cit, pp. 68.

[^206] Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah, pp. 25.

[^207] Ibn Wazih, op cit, 1:10.

[^208] Shawqi ®ayf, op cit, pp. 51, al-Jahiz, al-Mahasin wa’l-Azdad, pp. 62.

[^209] An exegete of the Holy Qur'an states that the two great personalities mentioned in the holy verse (43:31) are al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah in Mecca and `Urwah ibn Mas`ud al-Thaqafi in ta’if. Because of their great wealth, the had been expected to be the promised prophet.

[^210] tabataba’i, Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur’an 2:43; Ibn Kathir, Tafsir 4:442.

[^211] Ibn Kathir, al-Bidayah wa’l-Nihayah 2:229; al-alusi, op cit, 1:89; Muhammad Ahmad Jad al-Mawla Beck et al, Ayyam al-`Arab fi’l-Jahiliyyah, pp. 248.

[^212] al-alusi, op cit, pp. 87; Ibn Kathir, op cit, pp. 220.

[^213] Bakri, Mu`jam mastu`jim 2:444.

[^214] Jad al-Mawla, op cit, pp. 334.

[^215] Op cit, pp. 324.

[^216] Ibn Qutaybah, al-Ma`arif, pp. 576: Mas`udi, Muruj al-Dhahab 2:284; Jawad `Ali, op cit, pp. 96.

[^217] al-alusi, op cit, pp. 87.

[^218] Ibn Husham, op cit, 4:83; al-Waqidi, al-Maghazi 3:890; Ibn Sa`d, al-tabaqat al-Kubra 2:150; Halabi, al-Sirah al-Halabiyyah 3:63.

The Holy Prophet borrowed three thousand spears from his cousin, Nawfal ibn al-Harith ibn `Abd al-Muttalib. (Halabi, op cit)

[^219] al-Azraqi, Akhbar Makkah 1:107; Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:130.

[^220] Ibn `Abd-Rabbih, al-`Iqd al-Farid 3:314; Ahmad Amin, op cit, pp. 237; al-alusi, op cit, 1:145-150.

These institutes and organizations were not in the form of modern times as some historians, such as Georgie Zaydan and Lamens, had assumed; rather, they were very primitive and tribal.

[^221] Phillip Hatti, op cit, pp. 17.

[^222] Ibn Husham, al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah 1:59; al-Azraqi, op cit, pp. 176.

[^223] Ibn `Abd-Rabbih, op cit, 3:313; al-Azraqi, op cit, pp. 176.

[^224] al-Azraqi, op cit, 1:70.

[^225] Op cit, pp. 174; al-alusi, op cit, 1:242.

[^226] Ibn Sa`d, op cit, 1:70.

[^227] Jawad `Ali, op cit, 4:21.

[^228] Ibn Sa`d, op cit, pp. 69; Ibn Husham, op cit, pp. 125, 130; Ibn Athir, al-Kamil fi’l-Tarikh 2:20; al-Azraqi, op cit, pp. 189.

[^229] Ibn Sa`d, op cit, pp. 72; al-Azraqi, op cit, pp. 178, 182. It was because of Quraysh’s power and control over these ceremonies, people used to circumambulate the Kaaba naked. In this respect, there is a story about a naked woman who performed the Hajj ceremony composing a shameful verse of poetry. See al-Azraqi, op cit, 1:178, 182; Ibn Husham, op cit, 4:190; al-alusi, op cit, 1:244; sahih Muslim 18:162.

[^230] Al-Azraqi, op cit, pp. 177.

[^231] Ibn Husham 4:190.