Story No. 132 – Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) and his six true friends

In the third year after Hijrah (Migration), some members of the Ozal and Qareh tribes who resided near Makkah and apparently had the same origin with the Quraish tribe went to the honorable Prophet Muhammad (saw) and said, “Some members of our tribes have chosen Islam as their religion. Please send some Muslims to our tribes to teach us the meaning of religion, Noble Qur’an, Islamic principles and laws.”

 

Having heard this, the glorious Prophet Muhammad (saw) chose six of his Sahabah (Companions) to go with them. The leadership of those six was on the shoulders of Marand ibn Abi Marthad or Asem ibn Sabet.

 

Holy Prophet Muhammad’s (saw) messengers set off with that group and left Medina. They continued their way till they arrived in the domicile of the Hozail tribe and they alighted there. Holy Prophet Muhammad’s (saw) friends, were resting when suddenly a gang of people from the Hozail tribe attacked them with their swords.

 

Getting aware of the situation, the Holy Prophet Muhammad’s (saw) friends immediately went to their weapons and got ready to defend themselves.

 

The attackers swore that they would not intend to kill them but to hand them to the people of Quraish in Makkah in return for some money. They offered them a deal. Three of them including Asem ibn Sabet replied, “We never accept the meanness of dealing with Mushrikeen (polytheists).” They fought and were killed.

 

Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) and his six true friendsThe other three, Zaid ibn Dasaneh, Khabib ibn Oday and Abdullah ibn Tareq did accept and yielded.

 

The people of Hozail bound them with rope tightly and set off for Makkah. Abdullah ibn Tareq, getting near to Makkah, loosened the rope on his hands and reached his sword but the enemy did not waste any time and killed him.

 

Zaid ibn Dasaneh and Khabib ibn Oday, at the end of the trip, were sold in exchange for two captives of Hozail in Makkah.

 

Safvan ibn Umayyah Quraishi bought Zaid ibn Dasaneh. Safvan’s father was killed in the battle of Badr or Ohud so he intended to take his revenge on Zaid ibn Dasaneh and kill him.

 

Zaid ibn Dasaneh was taken out of Makkah. The people of Quraish gathered to see the scene. Zaid ibn Dasaneh came in with steady steps and there was no sign of fear on his face.

 

Abu Sufyan was watching the scene. He thought that it was the best time to make Zaid ibn Dasaneh insult the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) because it was the last moments of his life. Abu Sufyan went to Zaid ibn Dasaneh and said, “Do you not wish now that Muhammad was in your place and we would cut his neck while you would go to your wife and children comfortably?”

 

Zaid ibn Dasaneh replied, “I swear by Allah (SWT) that I do not like to see a thorn in the Holy Prophet Muhammad’s (saw) foot while I am resting at my house beside my wife and children.”

 

Abu Sufyan glared at him with his mouth open in surprise and then he turned his head back to the people of Quraish and said, “I swear by God I have not seen somebody’s friends love that person as much as Muhammad’s friends love him.”

 

Holy Prophet Muhammad’s (saw) friends loved him so much that they even could not see his foot injured with a thorn.

 

Having seen this love, Abu Sufyan, one of the arch enemies of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw), confessed that he had not seen somebody to be loved as much as Muhammad.

 

After a while, it was time for Khabib ibn Oday to be hanged so he was taken out of Makkah. Khabib ibn Oday asked them to let him say his Salaat (prayer). They let him and he said his prayer very humbly but quickly.

 

Then he turned to the people and said, “I swear by Allah (SWT) that if you did not accuse me of being frightened of death, I would say my prayer more.”

 

They bound him to the gallows tree. Then Khabib ibn Oday’s voice was heard while he was praying to Allah (SWT) in such a spiritual way that many people were influenced by it and some threw themselves on the ground.

 

What Khabib ibn Oday saying was is, “We performed the mission given to us by Your Messenger (saw), please let him know about what happened to us this morning. O Allah (SWT)! See these cruel people, destroy them all and do not let even one of them live.”

 

By Martyred, Morteza Motahhari in Attraction and Repulsion of Imam Ali (as)