The Blog of aamsaafank

94- YOU WHO BELIEVE, IF YOU TRAVEL IN THE CAUSE OF ALLAH, DO NOT SAY TO THOSE WHO GREET YOU: “YOU ARE NOT A BELIEVER”, SEEKING THE WHAT DOES NOT LAST FROM THIS LIFE, FOR ALLAH HAS PLENTY OF BOUNTY.  YOU WERE AS SUCH BEFORE, AND ALLAH BESTOWED HIS BOUNTY UPON YOU, THEREFORE ASCERTAIN CAREFULLY, FOR ALLAH KNOWS WELL ALL YOU DO.

A number of incidents are reported to have taken place prior to the sending down of this Ayah. 

1-    A number of Muslim men went past a man from Bani Salem minding sheep.  Bani Salem were at the time enemies to the Muslims.  The man greeted them with Alsalamo Alikom, but Muslim men attacked the man, killed him, and took the sheep he was minding.  Another incident.

2-    A Man was travelling to see Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him to inform him about his and his people’s Islam.  He met a group of Muslim soldiers and he told them where was he travelling to and why, but they did not believe him and killed him.  His father went Allah tell Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him who gave him a thousand gold pieces as well as the ransom in compensation.  (Ibn Jarir & Ibn Abi Hatem)

3-    It was also reported that Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him sent a group of Muslim soldiers on a mission.  Among them was a man called Al-Meqdad Ibn Al-Aswad.  When they reached the tribe they were sent to, they found that they have gone, and only a wealthy man stayed behind.  When they reached him, he testified that there is no god other than Allah, yet Meqdad went on and killed him, and his companions rebuked him and told Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him, who said: “O Meqdad, do you kill a believer who lived among disbelieving people hiding his belief, but when he reveals it you kill him.  You were hiding you belief in Makah before”.  (Abu Bakr El-Razi & B:Dyat;1)

4-    Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him sent a group Muslims, one of them was a man called Abd Allah Ibn Abi Hadr and another called Muhlem Ibn Gothama, to a tribe of disbelievers called Addm.  Near there, they met a man called Amer Ibn Al-Adbat Al-Ashgae, who had his camel and some of his belongings with him.  He greeted them with the greeting of Islam, but Muhlem Ibn Gothama attacked and killed him and took his camel and belongings.  The back ground to this is that there was an old feud between the two men’s families, since before Islam.  When they went back, they told Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him about what happened. 

Muhlem went and sate in front of Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him hoping that he would ask Allah the Highest to forgive him.  Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him said: “Allah, do not forgive him”, and Muhlem went away weeping.  Seven days later he died, when he was buried, the earth turned him out twice.  Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him said: “But the earth accepts worse than your companion, but Allah wants to give an example”.  (Ibn Jarir & Ahmed)

5-    Khalid Ibn Al-Waled headed a group of soldiers going to fight a tribe of the disbelievers.  When they reached them, they went out say: “Sabaena, Sabaena” (meaning we left our father’s faith) Yet Khalid did not understand that this meant that they have become Muslims and went on fighting them.  When Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him knew what happened he said: “Allah, I do not approve of what Khalid has done”.  He sent Ali Ibn Abi Taleb who ransomed their dead and compensated them for their lost or damaged property.  (B:Ahkam;35 & N:Qudah;17 & A:2;151)

All these incidents point to one important principle, that one Muslim should harm someone who testifies that there is no god other than Allah, even if he or she apparently says it to save his life.  Only Allah the Highest knows our intentions and what is in our hearts.

We should carefully ascertain the others, and not hurt people only by suspicious.  In fact suspicion should be taken in favour of the person we suspect, not against him.  Any gain we might gain others will be very short lived and through displeasing and angering Allah the Highest. 

We should always remember that even if one can deceive many people, Allah the Highest knows what is in our hearts and what our intentions are.

B: Bukhari    M: Muslim     Mal: Malek    A: Ahmed   D: Abu Dawood     

Da: Daremy       Ma: Ibn Magah            N: Nesae          T: Termezi