Our Salaf's endeavours in calling to Allaah – I

The importance of calling to Allaah and its virtue:
Calling to Allaah yields many great rewards, and it was the task of
the Messengers of Allaah. Sahl Ibn Sa`d reported: "The Messenger of
Allaah said on the day of the Battle of Khaybar to `Ali Ibn Abu Taalib
: "Advance cautiously until you reach their open places; thereafter,
invite them to Islam and inform them of what is obligatory for them
from the rights of Allaah because by Allaah, if Allaah guides even one
person through you that is betterfor you than possessing a herd ofred
camels." [Al-Bukhaari & Muslim] This was a reference to the finest and
most valuable typeof camel, which reflects the virtue of calling
people to Allaah and guiding them to the right path.
`Uqbah Ibn `Amr reported that the Messenger of Allaah said: "Whoever
guides someone to virtue will be rewarded (with the) equivalent reward
of he whopractices that good action." [Muslim]
Abu Hurayrah reported: "The Messenger of Allaah said: "If anyone calls
others to follow the correct guidance, his reward will be equivalent
to those who follow him (in righteousness) without their reward being
diminished in the least." [Muslim]
Abu Umaamah reported: "TheMessenger of Allaah said: 'Allaah, His
angels, the dwellers of the heaven and the earth and even the ant in
its hole and the fish (in the waters) supplicate in favour of those
who teach people(religious) knowledge.'" [At-Tirmithi]
These narrations and many others encourage people to endeavour in the
act of worship of calling to Allaah, so what morecould a person ask
for? The depths that people have sunk to in this regard are a result
of themneglecting their duty of calling others to Allaah, despite the
great status of this act of worship.
When people abandoned this act of worship, evil prevailed,
prohibitions spread and many people deviated.
Examples of the call of the Prophets to Allaah:
Calling to Allaah proves the sincerity of the person with regards to
the principles he claims to believe in as only he who truly loves his
religion will call others to it. The following aresome examples of the
prophets and messengers calling to Allaah:
The call of Nooh to his people:
Nooh, may Allah exalt his mention, was extremely dedicated in calling
his people to Allaah and he persevered in this, as Allaah Says (what
means): "…And he [i.e., Nooh] remained among them a thousand years
minus fifty years…" [Quran 29: 14] He called them tirelessly and
utilised all possible means to do so, as Allaah Says (what means): "He
[i.e., Nooh] said: 'My Lord! Indeed I invited my people [to truth]
night and day. But my invitation increased them not except in flight
[i.e., aversion]. And indeed, every time I invited them that You may
forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears, covered themselves
with their garments, persisted, and were arrogant with [great]
arrogance." [Quran 71: 5-7] Did this prevent him from continuinghis
mission in calling them to Allaah? Indeed not, he used all possible
methods to call them, asAllaah Says (what means): "Then Iinvited them
publicly. Then I announced to them and [also] confided to them
secretly." [Quran 71: 8-9]
The call of Yoosuf :
When Yoosuf was imprisoned, he did not forget his duty of calling to
Allaah. Rather, the first thing he did was to practice this duty when
his two cellmates requested him to interpret the dreams they saw. He
promised them that he would do so, but first mentioned what Allaah
describes as (what means): "…That is from what my Lord hastaught me.
Indeed I have left the religion of a people who do not believe in
Allaah, and they, in the Hereafter, are disbelievers. And I have
followed the religion of my fathers, Ibraaheem (Abraham), Is'haaq
(Isaac), and Ya'qoob (Jacob). And it was not for us to associate
anything with Allaah. That is the favour of Allaah upon us and upon
the people, but most of the people are not grateful. O [my] two
companions of the prison! Are separate lords better or Allaah, the
One, the Prevailing?" [Quran 12: 37-39] Note how he immediately called
them, despite the normal feeling of anguish that a person would feel
at being imprisoned.
The call of Prophet Muhammad :
The Prophet has set the greatest example in terms of dedication and
endurance in guiding people. This was very evident in his call to the
tribe of Quraysh, the Arab tribes and the masses in general. He would
call to Allaah whilst upon a mountain, in the Sacred Mosque, in the
street, in the market, in people's houses, during Hajj season, in the
desert, during times of peace and times of war, when healthy and when
sick, when visiting people, and when he was being visited. He was
calling people to Allaah all of the time.
He would call those who loved him as well as those who hated him. He
would approach tribes during the season of Hajj and call them to
worship Allaah saying: "O people! Allaah commands you to worshipHim
alone and ascribe no partners to Him."
He used to approach them during the season of markets likethat of
'Ukaath and say: "O people! Who will protect me? Who will support me?
Who would help me convey the message of my Lord?"
He continued to do so until Allaah blessed him with the honourable
Ansaar who resided in Madeenah and who gave him the pledge of support
in the first famous pledge of Al-'Aqabah. This marked the great
initiation point for the expansion of his mission.
The Prophet endured all typesof torture and insult for the sake of
propagating the message of Islam and calling the people to Allaah.
Once, riding a donkey he went to invite 'Abdullaah Ibn Ubayy, who was
the chief hypocrite, to Islam, but the lattersaid to him: "Keep your
donkey away from me, its stench offendsme." Yet he bore this
hypocrite's despicable manners and continued calling him to Allaah.
Anas reported: "Once, a Jewish boy who served the Prophet fell
(terminally) ill, so he went to visit him. He sat down by his head and
said to him: "Embrace Islam." The boy looked at his father who was
sitting beside him. The father said: 'Obey Abul-Qaasim (i.e., the
Messenger of Allaah ).' The (dying) boy therefore embraced Islam and
the Prophet stepped out of their home, saying: "Praise be to Allaah
who has saved him from the Hellfire." [Al-Bukhaari]
He went to call the people of Taa'if, but they refused to accept his
call and thus he returned grieved and saddened. But why? His anguish
was due to them not embracing Islam and refusing themessage of Allaah.
Distance did not stop him from conveying the message of Allaah to
anyone, but due to not being able to leave his followers who were in
dire need of his personal instruction, he sent messengers on his
behalf to convey the message of Allaah to all those that he was unable
to personally visit. He sent messengers to all the kings and rulers
that he possibly could.
The Prophet sent a message with Dihyah to the Governor of Busraa, who
forwarded it to Heraclius to read. The contents ofthe letter were as
follows: "In thename of Allaah The Beneficent, The Merciful. (This
letter is) from Muhammad the slave of Allaah and His Messenger to
Heraclius the ruler of Byzantine. Peace be upon he who follows the
right path. I invite you to Islam, and if you should become a Muslim
you will be safe, and Allaah will double your reward, but if you
reject this invitation to Islam then you will be committing a double
sin by misguiding your Areesiyyeen (i.e., peasants). (He then quoted
(which means): "…O people of the scripture! Come to a word that is
equitable between us and you – that we will not worship except Allaah
and not associate anything with Him and not take one another as lords
instead of Allaah. But if theyturn away, then say: 'Bear witness that
we are Muslims [submitting to Him].' " [Quran 3: 64