Destroying of al Laat

Destroying a False Goddess

A few days elapsed and delegation from Madinah sent by the Prophet [Muhammad - peace be upon him] arrived at Ta'if. The delegations was under the leadership of Khalid ibn Walid and included al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah. They went straight to al-Lat[1] to destroy it. All the Thaqif (2) came to witness that event: men, women and children. The vast majority of them did not think for a moment that al-Lat, the goddess the were worshiping until yesterday, would be destoryed. They seriously thought that she had the power to protect herself. Al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah. who belonged to the Thaqif but had accepted Islam a few years earlier, tool the axe in his hand and aid quietly to his fellow Muslims: "I will give you a good laugh at the Thaqif". As he hit al-Lat with the axe, he pretended to fall down immediately. The people of Ta'if cheered loudly. They said: "Away with al-Mughirah. He has been killed by the Rabbah [female goddess]". They could not conceal their pleasure when they saw him falling down. They turned to the Muslim delegation from Madinah and said to them: "Let any one of you who dares try to destroy her. You will soon realize that you cannot touch her".

At this moment, al-Mughirah sprang to his feet and said to them:" Foul on you Thaqif. What is she but a heap of mud and stone? It is about time you recognized God's blessings and worshiped Him alone". He hit the door with the axe to break it and together with his fellow Muslims, climbed the wall of the place housing al-Lat. They broker her up into pieces until the place was completely leveled down. The key-keeper of the place said repeatedly: "The foundation will now show its fury and they will sink down into the bottom of the earth".

Al-Mughriah then said to Kahlid: "Let me dig up her foundation". He did so and the earth underneath was turned upside down. The Muslims took off all the jewellery which was placed on al-Lat, a great amount. The Thaqif were bewildered as the Muslims went ahead with their task. The destruction of al-Lat went a long way towards reassuring the Thaqif that they had chosen the right course. They realized that al-Lat was absolutely useless; she was nothing more than a stone statue. Hence, their acceptance of Islam proved to be genuine.

When the Prophet [Muhammad - peace be upon him] received the jewelery and the fine garments which the Muslim delegation brought with them from their mission to destroy al-Lat, he thanked God and praised him for His help and kindness. A few months earlier the Prophet [Muhammad - peace be upon him] has received two young men from the Thaqif who came to declare that they were Muslims.

[1]The Arabs had changed the name of Allah (who they believed in since they were descendants of Prophet Ibrahim/Abraham and believed they were following his religion) into a female names, to Al Laat from Allaah, the same way they had changed other names of Allah like Al Manaan to Manaat, Al Azeez to al 'Uzza etc. These were innovations in the religion which led them to associating partners with Allah which is shirk (associating partners with Allah/God), the worst sin in the sight of Allah/God.

[2]The Thaqeef were the people who lived in Al Ta'if near Makkah, they were of the last of the great tribes to become Muslim in Arabia.



source:

Al Waqidi p968-9, oxford uni press publishing.

Original text from Muhammad, Man and Prophet by Adil Salahi.

Was there not amongst you even a single merciful man?!

Was there not amongst you even a single merciful man?! (Written By Abu Eesa Nimatullah)

On the authority of ibn ‘Abbās that the Prophet (sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) dispatched a military unit. Upon gathering the booty they found a man who said, “I’m not from them! I fell in love with a woman and followed her here! Allow me to at least look at her then you can do with me as you wish.”

The woman, tall and ebony-skinned, came forward and he said to her, “Submit to me O Hubaysh, before life comes to an end.


Have you not seen how I found you and followed you
To Halyah, through tight mountainous ravines?

Is it not the right of the lover to yearn
After suffering the entire night in pursuit and heat of the noon?”
She said, “Yes! May I be sacrificed for you!”

Then they took the man and killed him. The woman fell on his body, gasped once or twice, then died.

When the unit returned to the Messenger of Allah (sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and informed him of what had happened, he said, “Was there not amongst you even a single merciful man?!”


This narration, collected by Imām al-Nasā’i as well as al-Tabarāni and al-Haythami has a fair chain (as opined by ibn Hajr in al-Fath), although there is a dispute about its strength amongst the Muhaddithīn.

A powerful and sad hadith, it contains many benefits for the interested reader. Before that, some explanation to the hadith itself:

A sarīya is a military unit that would be sent out by the leader either to spread the message of Islam or in more acute battle scenarios. This unit had come across a rebellious group of Arabs who refused to accept the rule of law and hence they were taken as prisoners, except that the man in this narration wasn’t part of the original group of rebels – explaining as he does that he had fallen in love with a woman and followed her here – but yet was killed along with the other criminals despite his protests.

The place in which this occurred was called al-Halyah (also said to be al-Halbah in some narrations). Halyah was though to be from the plains of Yemen yet it is more likely to be within Arabia itself, near a place called Tihama. This is supported by other ahādith which mention this incident with slight differences (see no.10356 of al-Majma’ al-Zawā’id, also no. 8787 of Sunan al-Kubrā of al-Nasā’i).

The name of this lady was Hubayshah but he referred to her with a term of endearment by shortening her name to “Hubaysh”, something done similarly by the Prophet (sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) when he would affectionately call Ā‘ishah simply “Ā‘ish” as narrated by Imam al-Bukhāri in his Sahīh.

The man was infatuated with this woman, forgetting even death for a moment just to look at her one more time and even asked her to allow him this with his statement ‘submit yourself’ i.e. don’t begrudge me this last moment. Other scholars mentioned that it might mean ‘accept Islam’ or even ‘give me peace’ but the first position seems to fit the context and Allah knows best.

The woman’s response ‘fadaytuka’ is a well known expression of love and sacrifice amongst the Arabs, being an extreme sign of love and commitment. Indeed, the companions would often come and express their loyalty to the Prophet (sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) with the same term.

The beauty of this narration is that it shows some of the excellence of the Arabs in their poetry, their concern for love and romance, and the overriding principle of ease and gentleness in Islam despite its strict disciplinary and penal code in times of necessity.

So, from the many lessons, points of law and indeed benefits of this narration as mentioned by our teachers:

1. The intrinsic gentle nature of the Prophet (sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam)

2. Pardoning precedes Punishment

3. The power of love and its consequences, to the extent that it can make a man forget death

4. Love (and its consequent sadness) can kill as seen with the woman

5. A lesson to be learnt for those attempting to give fatwa for a death sentence – it is an unenviable responsibility despite its importance

6. The virtue of mercy to the creation, even if they differ with you

7. The concern of the leader for giving all people the possibility of hearing about Islam, and hence his emphasis on da’wah

8. The strength of Islam today has been based on retaining the best attributes of those who were not Muslim, particularly culture – this is seen more clearly in the other narrations as well.

9. That the leaders should always be fully appraised by those under his command so that he can either confirm their actions or correct them.

10. Both men and women of that time were equal in their knowledge of Arabic language and culture

11. It is permissible to look at a non-Mahram woman if there is a need; how else were the Sahābah able to describe her skin so accurately?

12. The intrinsic disadvantages of keeping continual company of such disbelievers. The man wasn’t even from this group yet he was taken because he was with them.

13. The harshness of the Sahābah, radhy-Allahu ‘anhum, on kufr and the aggressive disbelievers

14. There is no need for expiation/blood money if the Mujāhidīn make an honest mistake after their best efforts of ijtihād. There is discussion on this point.

15. The permissibility of killing a rebellious captive

16. Punishment is not immediate; a delay for requests or other reasons is allowed

17. Female captives are usually retained, to be freed or married as per the orders of the leader

18. The execution of aggressive prisoners was by the sword and by the striking of the neck

19. The Prophet (sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) would often reprimand his Companions, and as here, with severity

20. The Sahābah are not ma‘sūm (protected from making mistakes and sinning)

And Allah ‘azza wa jall knows best.



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