Episode 69: Umrah Al-Qadha
Preparations for Umrah (7th Year of Hijrah):
In the seventh year of Hijrah, in the month of Shawwal, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ planned to go to Umrah.
The fourteen hundred companions who were with the Prophet in Al-Hudaybiyyah went and six hundred more people joined.
There were now two thousand Muslims in total and the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ ordered for weapons to be carried on the camels.
Abu Bakr asked the Prophet ﷺ: wasn’t it part of the agreement we made with the Quraysh that we would be allowed to make Umrah but we were not allowed to bring any weapons.
The Prophet replied: Yes, that was part of the agreement. Abu Bakr then asked: why are we taking these weapons?
The Prophet ﷺ replied: the disbelievers of the Quraysh are people of treachery and betrayal, they can’t be trusted to keep their end of the deal so we have to take precaution.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: we will not break the treaty as we will leave the weapons outside of the borders of Makkah.
Entry into Makkah:
As the Muslims approached Makkah, the Quraysh noticed that they had weapons on their camels.
The Quraysh sent a messenger to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ saying: what is this? Why are you bringing weapons? We made an agreement that you are not allowed to bring weapons to Makkah.
The Prophet ﷺ replied: we are abiding by the treaty, we have no intention to break any of the terms of it.
The Prophet left the weapons outside of the borders of Makkah and he ordered two hundred men to stay on the outskirts of the city to watch the weapons. The rest of the Muslims then entered into Makkah to perform Umrah.
After they completed their Umrah, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ would send two hundred people to supervise the weapons, in order to let the two hundred men who were guarding the weapons come into Makkah and perform their Umrah.
The Quraysh’ Refusal to Leave:
Abu Sufyan and the leaders of the Quraysh ordered the residents of the city to evacuate Makkah for three days to let the Muslims complete their Umrah.
Some of the Quraysh refused to leave Makkah, which angered Abu Sufyan and because of this, he started a false rumour that the Muslims coming from Madinah had a yellow fever.
Abu Sufyan said: if the Quraysh stay in Makkah, they could possibly be infected with the yellow fever as well.
The remaining members of the Quraysh got scared and ran away.
Performing Umrah:
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ entered Makkah for the first time in seven years, since the Hijrah.
When the Prophet ﷺ arrived in the city, he heard the rumour that Abu Sufyan started, and he wanted to discredit that rumour so he said to his companions: may Allah have mercy on the man who today shows the Quraysh that he is strong.
The Prophet ﷺ, before making tawaf, took the upper garment of his ihram and put it under his right arm to expose his right shoulder.
He then informed his companions that they would do the first three rounds with a brisk strong walk (like a jog) to show the Quraysh that they were strong and healthy.
This is a Sunnah that continues to be done by believers at Umrah till this day.
The rumours were now proven to be false and the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ completed the rituals of Umrah.
The Quraysh’ Refusal to let the Prophet Enter the Kabah:
After completing Umrah, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ sent a request to the Quraysh to allow him to enter inside the Kabah.
The Quraysh refused this request because of their hatred him and said that they did not agree to this in the treaty of Al-Hudaybiyyah.
The Order for Bilal to Recite the Adhan on Top of the Kabah:
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ then ordered Bilal ibn Rabah to climb the top of the Kabah and once he got to the top, he performed the Adhan.
Abu Sufyan hearing this, said: Allah honoured Abu Jahal by causing him to die before he witnessed the day that this slave gives the Adhan of the Muslims on top of the Kabah.
The Prophet’s Marriage to Maymunah bint al-Harith:
The Muslims stayed for three days in Makkah where they worshipped Allah SWT and during the same trip, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ married Maymunah bint al-Harith.
Departure from Makkah:
The Quraysh sent the son of Abu Jahal, Ikrimah to tell the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ that the three days were over and now they had to leave Makkah.
The Prophet said to Ikrimah nicely: let us stay a little longer please, we will make a good feast for you and you can be our guests. Ikrimah replied angrily: we don’t need your food, just get out of our city!
Sa’d ibn Ubadah was angered to hear Ikrimah speak to the Prophet in this way. He said: it is not your city! It is the city of the Messenger of Allah and it is his city, he was born here and it is his land.
Sa’d started insulting Ikrimah but the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ told him to stop insulting him.
The Prophet started making preparations to leave Makkah and some of the members of the Quraysh wanted to instigate and saw an opportunity to fight the Muslims.
When the Prophet saw these people trying to attack them, he sent a message to them saying: if you are going to attack us, we are going to get our weapons outside of Makkah and we will fight you.
The members of the Quraysh had no idea that the Muslims had weapons outside of Makkah and when they heard this, they got scared and backed off.
Call for Khalid ibn Al-Walid:
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ left Makkah and set up a camp outside of the borders of Makkah.
The Prophet asked Al-Walid ibn al-Walid, the brother of Khalid ibn al-Walid: where is Khalid? Your brother Khalid is a man who has a very good mind. He is a very intelligent person and he has a mind that would guide him to the truth. It is time that he sees the truth of Islam. He should see that the way of his people worshipping these idols can bring no benefit. Khalid’s mind is better than that, his mind should lead him to the truth.
The Prophet ﷺ told Al-Walid: if Khalid joins us (becomes a Muslim), we will honour him.
Al-Walid then sent a letter to his brother Khalid, informing him of the conversation that he had with the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and when Khalid ibn al-Walid received this letter, Islam started to enter his heart.
Embracing Islam:
During tbis time, Amr ibn al-A’as went to Abyssinia and met with the Najashi, and after his conversation with him, Amr ibn al-A’as decided to accept Islam.
When he went back to Makkah, Amr ibn al-A’as told Khalid ibn al-Walid that he was going to become a Muslim and encouraged him to do the same.
Khalid agreed and they decided to go to Madinah to meet the Prophet and accept Islam.
Uthman ibn Talha, who was another person of high status amongst the Quraysh, also decided that he was going to accept Islam.
Amr ibn al-A’as, Khalid ibn al-Walid and Uthman ibn Talha all went together to Madinah to accept Islam.
When the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ witnessed this, he was very happy and said: Khalid and Amr and Uthman? What a victory this is! What a victory this is!
Conversion of the Tribe of Khuza’a:
The tribe of Khuza’a, who aligned themselves with the Muslims, were now ready to accept Islam.