Episode 70: The Prophet Invites Heraclius to Islam
Letters to the Kings (8th Year of Hijrah):
In the eighth year of Hijrah, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ sent letters to the rulers of the different empires, inviting them to Islam.
From the first of the letters, it was a letter sent to Heraclius, the ruler of the Roman Empire, which was the greatest Empire on Earth at that time.
Background Between the Persians and the Romans:
Two years before the Hijrah of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, there was a war between the Persian Empire and the Roman Empire.
The Quraysh wanted the Persian Empire to be victorious because they were idol worshippers and eventually, the Persian Empire did win the battle and the Quraysh were very happy with this.
Allah SWT then revealed: ‘Yet after this defeat (referring to the Romans), they will be triumph within three to nine years.’ (Quran, 30:3-4)
Heraclius’ Dream and Circumcision Discovery:
The leader of the Romans was Heraclius, who ruled over the lands of Turkey, As-Sham, Italy and the northern Empire.
Heraclius and his people were Christians and he made a vow that if the Romans were able to defeat the Persians, he would walk from the capital of his empire Constantinople to Jerusalem to thank Allah SWT.
Heraclius made his way to Jerusalem and on his journey, one night he had a dream. In this dream, he saw that his kingdom was being taken away from him at the hands of men who had been circumcised.
After interpreting this dream, the Roman Empire told Heraclius: the only people that are circumcised are the Jews.
This was because, at this time, the Romans were unaware of the Arabs and the Muslims who are also circumcised.
Because of this, Heraclius made the intention to massacre all of the Jews in the land and as soon as he was making these preparations, there happened to be an Arab man in the land of Sham, who was caught stealing.
When the authorities took him, while they were investigating, they took off his clothes to see if he was hiding anything and they realised that he was circumcised.
The authorities called the man a Jew, but the Arab replied: Wallahi, I am not a Jew, I am an Arab.
The Roman Empire now realised that the Arabs were also circumcised and they informed Heraclius of this discovery.
Heraclius cancelled his plan to massacre the Jews and wanted to get more information about the Arabs, so he asked the Arab thief: is there anyone who has come with something new, something that you didn’t know about before?
The Arab thief replied: I have heard about one man from Makkah, and he claims to be a Prophet.
Heraclius knew that this was the time that a Prophet would be appearing, so when he heard this Arab man say this, he became more interested and tried to get more information.
Meeting with Abu Sufyan:
Abu Sufyan and a delegation of the Quraysh happened to be in Sham at the time for a trading expedition.
Because of the treaty of Al-Hudaybiyyah, there was no risk of the Muslims ambushing their caravans, and they would go to As-Sham.
The Roman Empire brought Abu Sufyan and his delegation to Heraclius, who addressed Abu Sufyan and asked: who amongst you are closest in relation to the man who claims to be a Prophet?
Abu Sufyan replied: I am the closest related to him in terms of lineage.
Abu Sufyan and the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ shared a great grandfather, five generations above.
Heraclius told Abu Sufyan: I am going to ask you some questions and I want you to answer truthfully.
Hercalius addressed the rest of the Quraysh and said: if Abu Sufyan lies, then tell me that he is lying!
Abu Sufyan later on recounting this event said: even if I did lie, my people would never have spoken out against me because I am their leader, but I would not lie anyway because it is shameful to lie.
Heraclius asked Abu Sufyan: what is the status of the family of the man that claims to be a Messenger? Abu Sufyan replied: he comes from a noble family and a very high lineage.
Heraclius asked Abu Sufyan: has anyone before this man claimed to be a Prophet from amongst you? Abu Sufyan answered: No.
Heraclius asked Abu Sufyan: were any of his forefathers kings? Abu Sufyan replied: No.
Heraclius asked: who follows him, is it mostly the rich people or the poor people? Abu Sufyan replied: mostly the poor people follow him.
Heraclius then asked: are his followers increasing or decreasing? Abu Sufyan replied: increasing in number.
Heraclius asked: after accepting his faith, does anyone leave his religion? Abu Sufyan replied: No, once they accept his religion, they do not leave.
Heraclius continued: has he ever been accused of lying before his claim to prophethood? Abu Sufyan replied: No, he was never known to be a liar.
Heraclius asked: does he break promises? Abu Sufyan replied: No, he has never been known to break promises but right now, we have a treaty with him and we do not know what he is going to do.
Heraclius then asked: have you ever fought wars with him? Abu Sufyan replied: Yes.
Heraclius asked: what were the results of those wars? Abu Sufyan said: sometimes he wins and sometimes we win (referring to the Battle of Uhud).
Heraclius then asked: what does he order his people to do? Abu Sufyan replied: he orders to worship Allah alone and not to associate partners with him, and to leave the ways of our forefathers. He also orders that we pray and refrain from immoral actions and to keep the ties of kinship.
Heraclius’ Response to Abu Sufyan’s Answers:
After listening to the answers of all these questions, Heraclius gave his commentary to Abu Sufyan and said: I asked you about his family and you said: he comes from a noble family and all Messengers come from a noble family. I asked you if anyone has claimed prophethood before him and you said: ‘no’.
Then, I asked you if any of his forefathers are kings? You said: ‘no’. Then, I asked you if the rich or the poor follow him and you said the poor. This is the case with all of the previous Messengers as well. Then, I asked you if his followers are increasing or decreasing and you said: they are increasing and this is another sign of the truth. Then, I asked you if anyone leaves his religion after accepting it and you said: ‘no’. This is another sign of the truth.
Then, I asked you: has he ever been accused of lying before and you said: ‘no’. So if a person would not even lie against other people, there is no way he would lie against Allah. Then, I asked you if he ever broke promises and you said: ‘no’. This is also consistent with the Messengers before him as Messengers never break promises. And you also said that he orders to worship Allah alone and to not associate partners with him and to stay away from immorality and to keep the ties of kinship.
Heraclius told Abu Sufyan: if what you are saying is true, this man, Muhammad will soon occupy the place that is under my feet. He will take this land. And I knew that a Messenger was about to appear but I didn’t expect that he would be from the Arabs. If I could reach him right now, I would immediately go to meet him and if I was with him, I would personally go and wash his feet.
Islam Slowly Enters into Abu Sufyan’s Heart:
Abu Sufyan was amazed by this and he said to his men: the religion of Muhammad has reached such prominence now, that the emperor of the Roman Empire shows such reverence to him.
Abu Sufyan later mentioned that after his conversation with Heraclius, this was the moment that Islam started to enter his heart.
The Prophet’s Letter to Heraclius:
Dihya al-Kalbi, the messenger of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ arrived in As-Sham and presented the letter of the Prophet to Heraclius.
The letter read: In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. From Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, to Heraclius, the emperor of the Roman Empire. Peace be upon those who follow the guidance. Surely, I call you to the calling of Islam. Accept Islam and you will be safe. And Allah will give you your reward twice. But if you turn away, then the sin of the farmers under you, you will carry that sin.
The letter ended with the following Ayat from the Quran: ‘Say O People of the Book, come to a word that is the same between us and you, that we worship no one except Allah, and we do not associate partners with Him and we do not take each other as Lords besides Allah. If they turn away, then say: Bear witness that surely we are Muslims’. (Quran, 3:64)
Safatir – The Christian Scholar:
Heraclius told Dihya al-Kalbi to take the letter to Safatir, who was the most knowledgeable and respected Christian in the Roman Empire.
Safatir read the letter and started shaking, as he knew that it was the time for a Prophet to arrive.
He started to ask Dihya detailed questions about the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and Dihya answered all of his questions.
Safatir then said: I knew that this is the time that a Prophet would come, but I did not know that he would come from the Arabs. It is clear to me that he is the Messenger of Allah and this is the truth. So, I bear witness that there is no God but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah
Safatir Accepts Islam:
After this interaction with Dihya al-Kalbi, Safatir accepted Islam and gathered all the Christian scholars of the land, advising them to become Muslims.
Safatir reminded these Christian scholars with verses from the Tawrah and the Injil and how the characteristics found in the Books matched the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
The Murder of Safatir:
The Christian scholars were very disturbed with this. They knew Safatir was the most knowledgeable Christian and if he became a Muslim, they felt so many people would follow him to Islam, which would lead to the end of Christianity.
Instead of accepting the dawah of Safatir, the Christian scholars colluded together and killed him.
Heraclius’ Public Test:
When Heraclius found out about the death of Safatir, he was very worried and ordered for the Christian scholars to come to his palace. He also ordered his guards to stand at the gates with weapons.
Heraclius then came out of the balcony and read the letter of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to the Christians.
The Christians were angered by this and they tried to ambush the palace, saying: we will not leave Christianity, even if every one of us is killed!
Heraclius realised that if he stayed on the religion of Islam, the Christians would never accept him as a ruler and he would lose his kingdom.
Heraclius had to make a choice between Islam and keeping his kingdom and eventually, he decided to keep his kingdom and leave Islam.
He told his people: don’t worry, I didn’t really become a Muslim. This was just a test. I saw that Islam is becoming prominent so I feared that perhaps you may be affected by it as well and you may become Muslims. I was just testing you and you passed the test.
Heraclius then sent back gifts and money to Dihya al-Kalbi to send to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, and he also sent a message to the Prophet saying: Tell him (the Prophet) that I believe Islam in my heart, but I do not want to lose my Kingdom.
Response of the Prophet:
Eventually, Dihya al-Kalbi went back to Madinah with the gifts and the message from Heraclius.
When the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ received this message, he said: the enemy of Allah has lied. He is not a Muslim. Rather, the Dunya overtook him. He favoured the Dunya over the Akhirah and he decided to keep his kingdom instead of accept Islam.
The Prophet ﷺ ordered for the money that Heraclius gave to be distributed amongst the poor Muslims.