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The mercy of the Prophet even extended to those who
brutally killed and then mutilated the body of his uncle Hamzah, one of the
most beloved of people to the Prophet. Hamzah was one of the earliest to
accept Islam and, through his power and position in the Quraishite hierarchy, diverted
much harm from the Muslims. An Abyssinian slave of the wife of Abu Sufyan,
Hind, sought out and killed Hamzah in the battle of Uhud. The night before the
victory of Mecca, Abu Sufyan accepted Islam, fearing the vengeance of the
Prophet, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him. The latter forgave
him and sought no retribution for his years of enmity.
After Hind had killed Hamzah she mutilated his body by cutting
his chest and tearing his liver and heart into pieces. When she quietly came
to the Prophet and accepted Islam, he recognized her but did not say anything.
She was so impressed by his magnanimity and stature that she said, “O
Messenger of God, no tent was more deserted in my eyes than yours; but today no
tent is more lovely in my eyes than yours.”
Ikrama, son of Abu Jahl, was a great enemy of the
Prophet and Islam. He ran away after the victory of Mecca and went to Yemen. After his wife embraced Islam, she brought him to the Prophet Muhammad under her
protection. He was so pleased to see him that he greeted him with the words:
“O emigrant rider, welcome.”
Safwan bin Umaya, one of the chiefs of Mecca, was also a
great enemy of Muhammad and Islam. He promised a reward to Umair ibn Wahab if
he managed to kill Muhammad. When Mecca was conquered, Safwan ran away to
Jeddah in the hope of finding a berth that would take him to Yemen by sea. Umair ibn Wahab came to Muhammad and said, “O Messenger of God! Safwan ibn Umayya, a
chief of his tribe, has run away from fear of what you might do to him and threatens
to cast himself into the sea.” The Prophet sent him a guarantee of protection
and, when he returned, he requested Muhammad to give him two months to come to
a decision.. He was given four months, after which he became a Muslim by his
own will.
Habir ibn al-Aswad was another vicious enemy of Muhammad
and Islam. He inflicted a serious injury to Zainab, daughter of the Noble
Prophet when she decided to migrate to Medina. She was pregnant when she
started her migration, and the polytheists of Mecca tried to stop her from
leaving. This particular man, Habbar bin al-Aswad, physically assaulted her and
intentionally caused her to fall down from her camel. Her fall had caused her to
miscarry her baby, and she herself, was badly hurt. He had committed many
other crimes against Muslims as well. He wanted flee to Persia but, when he decided to come to Muhammad instead, the Prophet magnanimously forgave him.
The tribe of Quraish the were archenemies of Islam and,
for a period of thirteen years while he was still in Mecca, they would rebuke the
Prophet, taunt and mock him, beat him and abuse him, both physically and
mentally. They placed the afterbirth of a camel on his back while he prayed,
and they boycotted him and his tribe until the social sanctions became
unbearable. They plotted and attempted to kill him on more than one occasion,
and when the Prophet escaped to Medina, they rallied the majority of the Arab
tribes and waged many wars against him. Yet, when he entered Mecca victorious
with an army of 10,000, he did not take revenge on anyone. The Prophet said to
the Quraish:
“O people of Quraish! What do you think I will do
to you?
Hoping for a good response, they said: “You will do good.
You are a noble brother, son of a noble brother.”
The Prophet then said:
“Then I say to you what Joseph said to his
brothers: ‘There is no blame upon you.’ Go! For you all free!.”
Rarely in the annals of history can we read such an
instance of forgiveness. Even his deadliest enemy Abu Sufyan, who led so many
battles against Islam, was forgiven, as was any person who stayed in his house and
did not come to fight him.
The Prophet, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon
him, was all for forgiveness and no amount of crime or aggression against him
was too great to be forgiven by him. He was the complete example of
forgiveness and kindness, as mentioned in the following verse of the Quran:
“Keep to forgiveness (O Muhammad), and enjoin kindness, and
turn away from the ignorant.” (Quran 7:199)
He always repelled evil with the good of forgiveness and
kind behavior for, in his view, an antidote was better than poison. He
believed and practiced the precept that love could foil hatred, and aggression
could be won over by forgiveness. He overcame the ignorance of the people with
the knowledge of Islam, and the folly and evil of the people with his kind and
forgiving treatment. With his forgiveness, he freed people from the bondage of
sin and crime, and also made them great friends of Islam. He was an epitome of
the verse of the Quran:
“Good and evil are not alike. Repel evil with what is better.
Then he, between whom and you there was hatred, will become as though he was a
bosom friend.” (Quran 41:34)
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