the prime of his youth,handsome and very impressive looking. He was
the epitome of Arab chivalry and was endowed with all the
characteristics of pride, manliness and generosity.He took great pride
in the traditions of his ancestors.
Abu-l Aas inherited the Quraysh love for trade. The Quraysh of course
were known to be masters of the two annual trading expeditions, the
winter expedition to the south, to Yemen, and the summer expedition to
the north, to Syria.These two expeditions are mentioned in the Quran
in the chapter named after the Quraysh.
The caravans of Abu-l Ads alwaysplied between Makkah and Syria.Each
caravan was made up of two hundred men and a hundred camels. People
would entrust their wealth and their goods to him to trade on their
behalf because of his skill as a merchant, his honesty and his
trustworthiness.
The maternal aunt of Abu-l Aas was Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, the wife
of Muhammad ibn Abdullah. She treated him like a mother would her own
son, with love and affection. Muhammad too was extremely fond of him.
The years went by quickly in the household of Muhammad and Khadijah.
Zanaib, their eldest daughter, soon grew up and blossomed forth like a
lovely flower. She was much sought after in marriage by the sons of
respectable Makkan nobles. And why not? She was one of the most
distinguished Makkan girls in lineage and social standing. She was
blessed with the most honorable father and mother. And she had the
finest morals and behavior.
Which one of these scions of Makkan nobility would win her hand? Abu-l
Aas ibn Rabi'ah was the one who did.
Abu-l Aas and Zaynab were only married a few years when the Divine
light of Islam radiated over Makkah. Muhammad, the father of Zaynab,
was now the Prophet of God, sent to convey the religion of guidance
and truth. He was commanded to convey the message of Islam first to
his family and nearest relatives. The first women to believe in him
and accept Islam were his wife Khadijah and his daughters Zaynab,
Ruqayyah, Umm Kulthum and Fatimah. Fatimah was very young at the time.
Zaynab's husband however did not like leaving the religion of his
forefathers and he refused toadopt the religion which his wife now
followed although he was completely devoted to her and loved her
dearly with a pure and sincere love.
Before long, the confrontation between the Prophet, peace be upon him,
and the Quraysh developed and grew bitter. The Quraysh felt that it
was intolerable for their sons to remain married to Muhammad's
daughters. They also considered that it would be an embarrassing and
difficult situation for Muhammad if his daughters were to be returned
to his household. So they went to Abu-l Aas and said:
"Divorce your wife, Abu-l Aas, and send her back to her father's
house. We shall then marry you to any of the most charming and noble
women of the Quraysh you desire."
"No, by God," said Abu-l Aas firmly. "I shall not divorce my wife and
I do not wish to have inher place any woman in all the world."
Muhammad's other two daughters, Ruqayyah and Umm Kulthum were divorced
by their husbands and returned to his home. The Prophet in fact was
delighted when they came back to him and he had hoped that Abu-l Aas
would also return Zaynab to him except that at that time he had no
power to compel him to do so. The law forbidding the marriage of a
Muslim woman to a nonbelieving man was not yet inforce.
The Prophet, peace be on him, migrated to Madinah and his mission
became stronger. The Quraysh felt even more threatened by him ,red
went outto confront him at Badr. Abu-l Aas was compelled to go along
with the Quraysh army. He did not really have d desire to fight the
Muslims nor did he feel any inclination to join them. But his position
among the Quraysh- one of honor and trust - impelled him to go along
with their campaign against Muhammad. The battle of Badr ended in d
terrible defeat for theQuraysh and the forces of shirk. Some were
killed, some were taken prisoner and some managed to escape. Among
those, who were taken prisoner was Abu-l Aas, the husband of Zaynab.
The Prophet fixed amounts for the ransom of the prisoners of war
varying from one thousand to four thousand dirhams, according to the
wealth and social standing of the prisoner. Quraysh messengers went to
and fro between Makkah and Madinah bearing the ransom money to free
their relatives held in Madinah. Zaynab sent hermessenger to Madinah
bearing the ransom demand to free her husband. The ransom amount
included a necklace which her mother, Khadijah, had given to her
before she died. When the Prophet saw the necklace, his face at once
became covered with a veil of sadness and he felta surge of tenderness
for his daughter. He turned to his companions and said:
"Zaynab has sent this amount toransom Abu-l Aas. If you see fit to set
free her prisoner and return her possession to her, then do so."
"Yes," his companions agreed."We shall do whatever we can tosoothe
your eyes and make you happy."
The Prophet set one condition on Abu-l Aas before he freed him, that
he should send his daughter Zaynab to him withoutdelay.
As soon as he reached Makkah, Abu-l Aas began making arrangements to
carry out his promise. He ordered his wife to prepare herself for the
journey and told her that her father's messengers were waiting for her
just outside Makkah. He prepared provisions and a mount for her and
instructed hisbrother, Amr ibn ar-Rabi'ah, to accompany her and hand
her over personally to the Prophet's emissaries.
Amr slung his bow over his shoulders, took up his quiver of arrows,
placed Zaynab in her hawdaj and left Makkah with herin the broad light
of day, in full view of the Quraysh.
The Quraysh were furious. They pursued Zaynab and Amr until they
caught up with them. Zaynab was scared. Amr stood poised with his bow
and arrow and shouted:
"By God, if any man come near to her, I would plunge this arrow in his
neck". Amr was known to be an excellent marksman.
Abu Sufyan ibn Hath, who had bythis time joined the Quraysh group,
went up to Amr and said:"Son of my brother, put away your arrow and
let me talk to you."
This Amr did and Abu Sufyan went on: "What you have done is not
prudent. You left with Zaynab in full view of the people.All the Arabs
know the disasters we suffered at Badr at the handsof her father,
Muhammad. If you leave with his daughter in the open as you have done,
the tribes would accuse us of cowardice and they would say that we
have been humiliated. Return with her and ask her to stay in her
husband's house for a few days so that people could say that we
brought her back. Thereafter you can take her away quietly and
secretly from us and take her to her father. We have no need to detain
her."
Amr agreed to this and Zaynab returned to Makkah. A few days later, in
the middle of the night Amr took Zaynab and handed her over to the
Prophet's emissaries just as his brother had instructed.
After the departure of his wife, Abu-l Aas stayed on in Makkah for
several years. Then, shortly before the conquest of Makkah, he left
for Syria on a trading mission. On the return journey from Syria his
caravan consisted of some one hundred camels and one hundred and
seventy men.
As the caravan approached Madinah, a detachment of Muslims took them
by surprise. They impounded the camels andtook the men as captives to
the Prophet. Abu-l Aas however managed to escape. During the night
which was pitch black, Abu-l Aas entered Madinah fearful and alert. He
searched around until he came to Zaynab's house. He asked her
forprotection and she gave it to him.
At dawn, the Prophet, peace be on him, came out to the masjid to
perform the Dawn Prayer. He stood erect in the mihrab and said "Allahu
Akbar" to begin the Prayer. The Muslims behind him did the same. At
that point Zaynab shouted from the women's section of the masjid:
"O people! I am Zaynab the daughter of Muhammad. I have given
protection to Abu-l Aas. Dogive him your protection also."
When the Prayer was finished, the Prophet turned to the congregation
and said: "Have you heard what I heard?" "Yes, Messenger of Allah,"
they replied.
"By Him in Whose hand is my soul, I knew nothing of this untilI heard
what you heard. He is asking protection from the Muslims."
Back at home the Prophet said to his daughter: "Prepare a placeof rest
for Abu-l Aas and let him know that you are not lawful forhim." He
then summoned the men of the expeditionary force which had taken the
camels and the men of the caravan and said to them:
"You have taken the possessionsof this man. If you are kind to him and
return his property, we would be pleased. If however you do not agree
then the goodsis booty sanctioned by God which you have a right to."
"We would certainly return his possessions to him, Messenger of God,"
they replied and when Abu-l Aas came to collect his goods, they said
to him:
"You belong to the Quraysh nobility. You are the nephew of the
Messenger of God and his son-in-law. Would you accept Islam? We would
hand over all this wealth to you. You would then have for your own
enjoyment whatever wealth andpossessions the Makkans entrusted to you,
and stay with us here in Madinah."
"What an evil thing you are asking me do, to enter a new religion
while committing an actof treachery!" Abu-I Aas retorted.
Abu-l Aas returned to Makkah with the caravan and handed over all the
wealth and goods totheir rightful owners. Then he asked:
"O people of Quraysh! Is there any money left with me belonging to any
one of you which he has not taken?"
"No," came the reply. "And may God bless you with goodness. We have
indeed found you nobleand trustworthy."
Then Abu-I Aas announced:"Since I have now handed over to you what is
rightfully yours, I now declare that there is no godbut Allah and that
Muhammad isthe Messenger of Allah. By God, the only thing that
prevented me from declaring my acceptance of Islam while I was with
Muhammad in Madinah was my fear that you would think that I did so
only to appropriate your wealth. Now that I have discharged my trust
in this matter, I now declare that I am a Muslim..."
Abu-l Aas then left for Madinah where the Prophet received him
hospitably and returned his wifeto him. The Prophet used to say about
him: "He spoke to me and was truthful to me. He made promises to me
and remained faithful to his word."
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