At-Tufayl ibn Amr (RA)
Early Life and Character:
At-Tufayl ibn Amr was the leader of the tribe of Daws and he was well renowned for feeding the poor, helping out those in need and he also granted asylum to refugees.
First Encounter With the Quraysh:
As At-Tufayl approached Makkah, the Quraysh leaders gathered around him and gave him a warm welcome, accommodating him in a big house.
The Quraysh leaders said: O Tufayl, you have come to our town. There is a man who claims to be a Prophet that has ruined our authority and shattered our community. We are afraid that he would succeed in undermining you and your authority among your people just as he did with us. Do not speak to the man or listen to what he has to say. He has the speech of a wizard, causing division between father and son, between brothers and between husband and wife.
At-Tufayl then went to do tawaf around the Kabah to worship the idols and he placed a piece of cotton in his ears, fearing that he would hear the speech of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
Meeting the Prophet:
When he entered the Mosque, he witnessed the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ standing near the Kabah and noticed that the Prophet was praying in a different manner to what they were used to.
At-Tufayl ibn Amr Recounting Witnessing the Prophet Praying:
At-Tufayl ibn Amr said about this: His worship made me tremble and I felt drawn to him.
At-Tufayl ibn Amr in the House of the Prophet:
At-Tufayl remained by the Kabah until the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ left for his home.
As he entered his house, At-Tufayl followed him and said: O Muhammad, your people have said certain things about you. But Allah, they kept on frightening me away from your message so I even blocked my ears to keep out your words. Despite this, Allah caused me to hear something of it and I found it good. So tell me more about your mission.
At-Tufayl ibn Amr Accepts Islam:
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ recited Surah Ikhlas and Surah al-Falaq.
At-Tufayl said: I swear by Allah, I had never heard such beautiful words before. Neither was a more noble or just mission ever described to me.
At-Tufayl ibn Amr continued: I stretched out my hand to him in allegiance and testified that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. This is how I entered Islam.
Inviting His Family and the Tribe of Daws to Islam:
At-Tufayl ibn Amr stayed in Makkah learning the teachings of Islam and memorising the Quran.
When he decided to return to his tribe, he said: O Muhammad, I am a man who is obeyed in his tribe, I am going back to them and I shall invite them to Islam.
At-Tufayl ibn Amr’s Father Accepts Islam:
At-Tufayl then told his father that he had accepted Islam and now followed the religion of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
At-Tufayl’s father accepted Islam and said: My son, your religion is my religion.
At-Tufayl’s Wife Accepts Islam:
At-Tufayl then informed his wife that he had accepted Islam, and she also accepted Islam and said: your religion is my religion.
At-Tufayl Invites His Tribe of Daws to Islam:
At-Tufayl invited his tribe of Daws to accept Islam, where a great companion of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, Abu Hurayrah was the quickest to respond to the invitation of Islam.
Return to the Prophet:
The next time At-Tufayl ibn Amr went to Makkah, he was accompanied by Abu Hurayrah.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ asked him: what have you left behind? At-Tufayl replied: Hearts with veils over them obscuring the Truth and firm disbelief. Sin and disobedience have won over Daws.
The Prophet’s Dua for the Tribe of Daws:
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ then made wudu and prayed with his hands raised to the heavens.
When Abu Hurayrah saw this, he thought the Prophet was praying against the people of Daws and that they would be destroyed.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ prayed: O Lord, guide the Daws, guide the Daws, guide the Daws.
The Prophet then turned back to At-Tufayl and said: Go back to your people, befriend them, treat them gently and invite them to Islam.
At-Tufayl ibn Amr’s Successful Dawah:
At-Tufayl stayed in the land of Daws, inviting the residents to Islam until after the Hijrah of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to Madinah and after the Battles of Badr, Uhud and Khandaq.
At-Tufayl ibn Amr went back to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ with eighty families who had accepted Islam.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was very happy with this and gave them a portion of the spoils of war after the Battle of Khaybar.
At-Tufayl ibn Amr then stayed with the Prophet until the conquest of Makkah.
Destruction of the Idol Dhu-l Kafayn:
After the destruction of the idols, At-Tufayl asked the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to send him to put an end to the worship of Dhu-l Kafayn, the biggest idol of the tribe of Daws.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ granted his request and gave him permission to do this.
The men, women and children among the tribe of Daws had gathered and were upset that the idol was going to be burnt.
They were waiting to see if anything bad would happen At-Tufayl if he harmed their biggest idol, Dhu-l Kafayn.
At-Tufayl approached the idol and as he set fire to it, he said: O Dhu-l Kafayn, of your worshippers I certainly am not. Fire have I inserted into your heart.
After they witnessed this, the whole tribe of Daws accepted Islam and realised that they were wrong in their idol worshipping beliefs.
At-Tufayl’s Service:
At-Tufayl ibn Amr remained with the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ until he passed away. He then placed himself in the service of Abu Bakr during his Caliph and during the Riddah wars, At-Tufayl led an army against the false prophet, Musaylimah.
At-Tufayl ibn Amr’s Death:
In the Battle of Al-Yamamah, At-Tufayl ibn Amr fought hard but eventually died as a martyr on the battlefield.
Hadith Narrated by At-Tufayl ibn Amr:
At-Tufayl ibn Amr narrated: I came to the Prophet and said: O Messenger of Allah, Daws (a tribe) has disobeyed and refused to accept Islam. Supplicate against them! The Prophet raised his hands and said: O Allah, guide the people of Daws and bring them to Islam. (Bukhari, Muslim)