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Chapter 18: Rusty Weapons

The ruling forces of idolatry were in a state of readiness throughout the Arabian Peninsula. Quraysh had organized their ranks to campaign against the worship of Allah the One. At the early stages they wished to make the Prophet abandon his mission by alluring him and offering him wealth and authority, but were faced with his well-known reply: "By Allah! Even if you place the sun on my right hand and the moon on my left hand (i.e. give me authority over the entire world) I shall not abandon this mission". Then they started threatening, humiliating and persecuting his friends and were never tired of harming and torturing them.

However, the heroism and steadfastness of his sincere friends made them succeed in this ordeal also, so much so that they purchased their perseverance in the path of Islam by abandoning their homes, and endeavoured to spread this sacred religion by migrating to Ethiopia. However, the operations of the ruling forces of idolatry to uproot the sapling of Islam had not yet ended. Rather they now sought to use a sharper weapon.

This weapon was that of anti-Muhammad propaganda. Evidently torture and oppression could prevent from adopting Islam, only those persons, who were residing in Makkah. It could not be effective in respect of those who came to Makkah in groups during the sacred months, to perform the pilgrimage of the House of Allah.

The pilgrims contacted the Prophet in an atmosphere of peace and tranquillity and even if they did not embrace his religion they at least became shaky about their own creed (idol-worship). And when they left Makkah after a few days and returned to their homes, they carried the name of the Prophet and the story of the new religion to all the corners of Arabia. And this in itself was considered to be a severe blow to the rule of idolatry, and was a wonderful factor leading to the expansion of Islam.

The elders of Quraysh, therefore, put another destructive programme into practice and wished to withhold by this means the expansion of the Prophet's religion and thus to cut off his contacts with the Arab society.

Undue Calumnies

The character of man can be understood best from under the veil of the abuses and calumnies of his enemy. In order to misguide the people the enemy always endeavours to make such accusations against his opponent as are palatable to the society to the extent of even one per thousand so that by spreading falsehoods and baseless things he may, as far as possible, diminish his honour and position.

A wise enemy endeavours to impute such things to his opponent as are believed by some particular persons or are at least doubted by them. He does not, however, circulate about his opponent those things, which do not at all apply to him and have no bearing on his well-known and obvious mentality and deeds, because otherwise he would achieve results contrary to those desired by him.

As such a proficient historian can study the real countenance of the other party from behind the falsehoods and calumnies and can learn about his social success and mentality even from behind the control tower of the enemy.

It is so because a shamelessly fearless enemy does not avoid publishing a false charge which is to his advantage and derives maximum benefit from the sharp weapon of propaganda to the extent his thinking, intelligence and knowledge of the situation permit him. If, therefore, he does not associate anything undue with the other party it is because that person is free from every such weakness and the society is not, therefore, prepared to accept that stuff.

The history of Islam shows that although Quraysh entertained unusual enmity and rancour against the Prophet and were keen to pull down the newly-built edifice of Islam at all costs and to diminish the personality and position of its founder, they could not make full use of this weapon (i.e. calumny). They wondered what to say when the property of some of their own people was lying at his house (i.e. as trust) and his forty years' noble life had proved film to be an honest man.

Could they possibly accuse him of sensuality? But how could they bring this word on their tongue? He began his manhood with a comparatively old woman and was still spending his days with her when Quraysh met to organize propaganda against him! They then reflected as to what they should say so that it might apply to him and at least one per cent of the people might accept it to be probably true.

The elders of Darun Nadwah were puzzled as to how they should use this weapon against him. They, therefore, decided to place the matter before one of the sages of Quraysh and to implement his advice. An assembly was formed.

Walid turned to Quraysh and said: "The Haj season is near and during these days people come to this city in large numbers to perform various obligations and ceremonies attached to Haj. Muhammad will make use of the opportunity afforded by the freedom available during these days and will propagate his religion. It will be better if Quraysh express their final view about him and his new religion. Hence, all should communicate only one opinion to the Arabs, because diversity of opinions will make their words ineffective".

Having said this the sage of Arabia thought over the matter and said: "What should we say?" One of them suggested: "We should say that he is a soothsayer". Walid did not like this suggestion and said: "What Muhammad says is not like the words of the soothsayers".

Another person proposed that they should call him insane. This proposal was also rejected by Walid, who said: "No signs of insanity are found in him". After much discussion they decided unanimously thus: "We should say that he is a magician, because his way of saying things is magical and the proof of this is that by means of his Qur'an he has created dissension amongst the Makkans, whose harmonious relations were proverbial, and has destroyed their unity.1

While commenting on Surah al-Muddaththir the exegetes have given another version of this matter. Thev say: "When Walid heard some verses of Surah al-Fussilat from the Holy Prophet, he was spell bound and it made his hair stand on end. He left for his house and did not come out again. Quraysh began ridiculing him and said that Walid had become a follower of the religion of Muhammad. They went to his house collectively and enquired from him about the reality of Muhammad's Qur'an.

Whenever anyone of those present made a suggestion on the above lines he rejected it. Eventually he expressed the view that they should call the Holy Prophet a magician, on account of the discord which he had created between them, and should say that he has a magical way of saying things!

The exegetes believe that the verses (11-26) of Surah al-Muddaththir commencing with

"Leave to Me the man, whom I have created alone, up to "I shall make him suffer the torment of Hell',

have been revealed about Walid ibn Mughayrah.2

Persistence in Attributing Insanity

It is an admitted fact of history that from his early manhood the Prophet was known for his uprightness and truthfulness, and even his enemies bent down their heads involuntarily before his high qualities. One of his outstanding attributes was that the people called him truthful and honest, so much so that the idol-worshippers used to deposit their belongings with him till ten years after the general invitation.

As the invitation of the Prophet was very unpleasant and indigestible for his enemies, their only effort was that they should turn away the people from him by means of words which could completely contaminate their minds. As they knew that attributing falsehood and calumny to the Prophet would not impress the minds of the artless and simple idolaters they were compelled to deny his invitation by saying that the source of his views and thoughts was insanity which was incompatible with the qualities of piety and righteousness. They made many evil designs and practiced cunning and deceit in propagating this hypocritical imputation.

On account of acute hypocrisy they pretended to be quite honest while making this imputation and expressed the matter in ambiguous terms and said:

"Has he invented a lie About Allah, or is he mad?" (Surah Saba, 34:8).

And this is the very devilish method which the enemies of reality adopt while denying great men and reformers of the society. The Holy Qur'an tells that this abominable method was not peculiar to the contemporaries of the Holy Prophet, as the enemies of earlier Prophets had also used this weapon to contradict them. It says:

Thus whenever an apostle came to those that flourished before them they cried: 'Sorcerer!' or 'Madman!' Have they handed down this cry from one generation to the next? Surely they are transgressors all". (Surah al-Zariyat, 51: 52-53)

The present Injeel also tells that when 'Isa gave counsel to the Jews they said: 'There is satan in him and he talks incoherently. Why do you listen to him?' (St. John, chapter, 10:20 and chapter, 7:48, 52)

No doubt if Quraysh had been in a position to slander the Prophet on any other account they would not have desisted from doing so. However, for more than forty years the honourable life of the Prophet checked them from uttering any other calumny against his character although they were ready to use the smallest thing against him.

For example, he used to sit at times near Marwah with a Christian slave named Jabr. His enemies immediately took advantage of this practice of his and said: "Muhammad learns the Qur'an from this Christian slave". The Holy Qur'an replies thus to their baseless accusation: "We know that they say that a man teaches him the Qur'an. However, the language of the man whom they mention is non-Arabic, whereas this (the Qur'an) is in clear Arabic."3

Imposture of Nazar Bin Harith

The rusty weapon of propaganda against the Prophet did not prove effective at all, because people realized through their wisdom and intelligence that the Qur'an possesses a wonderful charm. They also felt that they had never before heard such sweet and meaningful words which immediately impressed one's mind. When the enemies did not profit by calumniating the Prophet they thought of another childish plan and hoped that by putting it into practice they would be able to deprive him of the attention and belief of the people.

Nazar bin Harith, who was one of the intelligent and experienced men of Quraysh who had spent a part of his life in Hira and Iraq possessed knowledge about the status of the kings and warriors of Iran like Rustam and Asfand Yar and of the beliefs of the Iranians about good and evil, was selected to campaign against the Prophet. Darun Nadwah approved the idea that by displaying his art in the streets and bazaars and relating the stories of the Iranians and the adventures of their kings, Nazar should divert the attention of the people from the Prophet to himself.

In order to diminish the status of the Prophet and to show his words and the verses of the Qur'an to be valueless, he said repeatedly: "O people! What is the difference between my words and those of Muhammad? He tells you the tales of the people who were subjected to Divine wrath and fury, and I tell you the story of those who were very much blessed and have been ruling on the face of the earth for long long years".

This plan was so foolish that it did not last for more than a few days. So much so that Quraysh themselves got tired of Nazar's words and deserted him.

Some verses of the Qur'an were revealed in this regard: "They say: 'Fables of the ancients he has written: they are dictated to him morning and evening'. Say: 'It is revealed by Him Who knows the secrets of the heavens and the earth. He is Forgiving and Merciful'. (Surah al-Furqan, 25:5-6)

Persistence of Quraysh in Their Faith

The Prophet of Islam knew very well that most of the people practiced idol-worship in imitation of the chiefs of the tribe and this practice was not deeply rooted in their hearts. In case, therefore, a change was brought about in the chiefs and he was successful in guiding one or two of them, most of the difficulties would be solved.

He was, therefore, very keen to attract Walid bin Mughayrah (whose son Khalid later became a Muslim commander and conqueror), because he was the most aged and the most influential person amongst Quraysh and enjoyed respect and authority. He was called the sage of Arabia and his views were respected in various disputable matters.

One day when the Holy Prophet was conversing with him (Walid) Ibn Umme Muktum, a blind man, approached the Prophet and requested him to recite some verses of the Holy Qur'an for him. He insisted so much that the Prophet disliked it, because it was not known as to when another opportunity to converse with the sage of Arabia in a peaceful atmosphere would come. He, therefore, turned away his face from Ibn Umme Mukrum and, with a frown on his brow, ignored him.

This incident was over. However, the Prophet was thinking about the matter when the first fourteen verses of Surah 'Abasa were revealed:

He frowned and then turned away from a blind man who had come up to him. You never know. Perhaps he wanted to purify himself, or receive some (Qur'anic) advice which would benefit him. Yet you pay attention to a rich man, though you will not be questioned even if he never purifies himself. As for the one who comes to you earnestly (striving for guidance) and who has fear of God, you ignore him. This is an admonition. These verses are a reminder, so let those who want to follow its guidance do so. (Surah 'Abasa, 80: 1-17)

Distinguished Ulema and research scholars amongst the Shi'ah consider this portion of the episode to be baseless and inconsistent with the good nature of the Holy Prophet and they say that the verses themselves do not indicate that it was he who frowned and turned away his face from the blind man.

It has been quoted from Imam al-Sadiq that the person meant was one who belonged to the family of Umayyah. When Ibn Umm Muktum approached the Prophet that man showed hatred for him and these verses were revealed to admonish him.4

They Prohibit Hearing of The Qur’an

The idolatrous administration of Makkah had chalked out an extensive programme to check the expansion of Islam. They put their schemes into operation one after another, but failed to achieve their purpose.

They carried on extensive propaganda against the Prophet from time to time, but did not meet with any success. They saw that he was steadfast in his mission and the rays of the light of Divine monotheism were penetrating further day after day.

The chiefs of Quraysh decided to prohibit the people from hearing the Qur'an and in order to ensure the success of their scheme they posted spies in all parts of Makkah so that they might restrain the pilgrims and tradesmen, who visited Makkah, from contacting Muhammad and might stop, by all possible means, their hearing of the Qur'an. The spokesman of the group circulated a declaration amongst the Makkans, about which the Holy Qur'an says:

"The disbelievers say: 'Do not Iisten to this Qur'an but make a lot of unnecessary noise while it is being read so that perhaps you will defeat it'." (Surah al-Fussilat, 41:26)

The most effective weapon used by the Holy Prophet which created a strange awe and fear in the hearts of the enemies was the Qur'an itself. The chiefs of Quraysh could see that many sworn enemies of the Holy Prophet went to meet him just to ridicule or harm him, but as soon as they heard a few verses of the Holy Book they became his sincere followers. To prevent such occurrences Quraysh decided to prohibit their subordinates and supporters from hearing the Qur'an and declared conversation with Muhammad to be unlawful.

The Law-Breaking Legislators

The same people who strictly prohibited the hearing of the Qur'an and punished all those who defied the declaration, came, after a few days, under the category of law-breakers and practically broke secretly the very law which they had themselves approved!

One night Abu Sufyan, Abu Jahl and Akhnas bin Shariq left their houses and proceeded to the residence of the Prophet, without the knowledge of one another. Everyone of them concealed himself in a corner and their object was to hear the Qur'an of Muhammad, which he used to recite at night with a pleasant voice, while performing his prayers. All of them remained there till morning, without being aware of the presence of others, and heard the Qur'an.

In the morning they had to return to their houses. They met on the way and reproached one another saying that if the simple-minded people came to know about their activities what would they think about them?

The same thing was repeated during the next night. It would seem that an inner urge and charm attracted them to the house of the Holy Prophet. At the time of their return they met again and exchanged mutual reproaches and decided not to repeat their action. However, the attraction of the Qur'an was such that they again went to his house without the knowledge of one another and sat round it and heard the Qur'an till morning. When they heard the Qur'anic verses their fear increased every moment and they said to themselves: "In case the promises and the threats of Muhammad be true, we have led sinful lives".

When it was dawn they left the house of the Prophet for the fear of the simple-minded people and again met one another. All of them admitted that they could not withstand the attraction of the 'call' and the law of the Qur'an. However, to prevent any unpleasant occurrences, they concluded a mutual agreement that they would not resort to this action again.5

Preventing People from Embracing Islam

After implementing the first programme of hearing the Qur'an to be unlawful, they started the second one. People residing in near and far off palaces, as and when they were inclined towards Islam, proceeded to Makkah The spies of Quraysh contacted them on the way or at the time of their arrival in Makkah and prevented them under different pretexts from embracing Islam. Here are two clear examples:

1. A'asha was one of the great poets of the Age of Ignorance and his verses were quoted in the assemblies of Quraysh. He heard about the commandments of Allah and the splendid teachings of Islam at the time when he had grown old. He lived at a place which was at a far-off distance from Makkah.

The 'call' of the Holy Prophet had not yet been extended fully to that area, but even that which he had heard about Islam in brief terms created a great love for it in his heart. He composed a marvellous panegyric in praise of the Prophet and did not consider a gift better than that he should recite it in the presence of the Prophet.

Although the number of the verses of this panegyric does not exceed twenty four, these are the best and the most eloquent verses recited in the praise of the Holy Prophet during those times. The text of these verses may be seen in his poetical works.6 The poet commends upon the sublime teachings of the Prophet which had illuminated his mind.

A'asha had not yet been fortunate enough to come to the Prophet when the spies of the idol-worshippers contacted him and became aware of his feelings. They knew well that A'asha was a sensual person and was addicted to wine. They at once took advantage of his weak points and said: "O Abu Basir! The religion of Muhammad does not conform to your mentality and moral condition!" He said "Why not?"

They replied: "He has declared adultery unlawful." He said: "I have nothing to do with it and this thing does not stand in the way of my embracing Islam". They added: "He has also banned drinking of wine". On hearing this he became somewhat uneasy and said: "I am not yet satiated with wine. I shall return now and shall drink wine to my fill for a period of one year and shall come next year and embrace Islam at his hands". He then returned, but death did not permit him to do what he had said, for he died the same year.7

Another Example

Tufayl bin 'Amr, who was a wise man and a melodious poet and enjoyed great respect in his tribe, came to Makkah. It was very detestable and annoying for Quraysh that Tufayl should embrace Islam. The chiefs of Quraysh and the jugglers of diplomacy, therefore, gathered round him and groaned and said: "That man who is offering his prayers by the side of the Ka'bah has destroyed our unity and created dissensions amongst us by his magical narrations and we are afraid that he would create a similar discord in your tribe also. It will, therefore, be much better if you do not converse with him at all".

Tufayl says: "Their words impressed me so much that fearing that Muhammad's magical narrations might affect me, I decided not to speak with him or to hear what he said. In order to ward off the influence of his magic, therefore, I decided to put some cotton in my ears while performing 'tawaf', so that his voice should not reach me, while he was reciting the Qur'an and offering his prayers. In the morning I entered the mosque after having put cotton in my ears and was not at all inclined to hear him speak.

However, I don't know how it happened that all of a sudden some extremely sweet and charming words reached my ears and I enjoyed them very much. Upon this I said to myself: "Curse upon you! You are an eloquent and intelligent person. What is the harm if you hear what this man says? If he says something good you should accept it, otherwise you can very well reject it. I waited, however, so that I might not contact the Prophet openly.

At last the Prophet proceeded to his house and entered it. I also obtained permission and entered his house. I told him the entire story and said: "Quraysh ascribe so many things to you, and in the beginning I had no intention of seeing you. However, the sweetness of the Qur'an has drawn me to you. I now request you kindly to explain the nature of your religion and recite a portion of the Qur'an to me".

"The Holy Prophet made his religion known to me and recited some verses of the Qur'an".

Tufayl adds: "By Allah! I had never heard a narration more appealing and had never seen a law more moderate!"

Then Tufayl said to the Prophet: "I am an influential man in my tribe and shall take steps for the propagation of your religion".

Ibn Hisham writes8 that he (Tufayl) was with his tribe till the Battle of Khayber and remained busy in propagating Islam and joined the Holy Prophet in that very battle along with seventy or eighty Muslim families.9 He remained steadfast in Islam till he met his martyrdom in the Battle of Yamamah.

Notes

1. Seerah-i Ibn Hisham, vol. I, page 270.

2. Majma'ul Bayan, vol. X, page 387.

3. Seerah-i Ibn Hisham, vol. I, page 393.

4. Majma'ul Bayan, vol. I, page 437

5. Seerah-i Ibn Hisham, vol. I, page 337.

6. Diwan-i A'asha, pp. 101-103.

7. Seerah-i Ibn Hisham, vol. I, pp. 386 - 388.

8. Seerah-i Ibn Hisham, vol. I, page 410.

9. Dr Haykal says: "He joined the Prophet after the conquest of Makkah and we have not yet found any evidence for this statement.

Chapter 19: The Fiction of Gharaniq

It is possible that some of the readers may like to know the origin of the myth of 'Gharaniq', which has been quoted by some Sunni historians, and may incidentally become aware of the hands which have been busy in inventing and propagating falsehoods.

The Jews, and especially their religious leaders, have been and are sworn enemies of Islam. A group of theirs like Ka'b Ahbar who had ostensibly embraced Islam was continuously busy in concealing the realities of Islam by coining falsehoods and publicizing baseless things by ascribing them to the Prophet, and some of the Muslim writers, reposing confidence in all their co-religionists, accepted most of their forgeries without proper scrutiny and compiled them in the shape of tradition and history.

Nowadays, however, more opportunities are available to the scholars for scrutinizing such matters and particularly a set of rules and methods has come into existence as a result of the efforts of the Muslim research scholars for distinguishing historical facts from myths. In the circumstances it is not at all proper for a writer, who is well-versed in religious matters, to accept as final whatever he comes across in a book and to quote it without verification.

What is the Fiction of 'Ghayraniq'?

It is said that the chiefs of Quraysh like Walid, 'As, Aswad and Umayyah met the Prophet and proposed that, in order to remove their mutual differences, both the parties should acknowledge the gods of each other. At that moment 'Surah al-Kafirun' was revealed in reply to their proposal and the Prophet was ordered to speak thus: "I do not worship that which you worship, nor do you worship Him whom I worship."

Nevertheless, the Prophet was fiery keen to reconcile with his people and wished that an order might be revealed which should lessen the gap between him and his kinsmen. One day he was sitting near the Ka'bah and reciting Surah al-Najm in a sonorous tone. When he reached these two verses. "Have you thought on al-Lat and al-Uzza and thirdly on Manat?"

Satan suddenly made him utter another two sentences viz. "These are 'Gharaniq'1 who are high in position and their intercession is acceptable", and then he recited the remaining verses. When he reached the verse of sajdah (the last verse of the surah) the Prophet himself as well as all others present, whether Muslims or idolaters, performed sajdah before the idols, with the exception of Walid who was too old to do so.

There was tumult and rejoicing amongst those who were present in the mosque and the idolaters said that Muhammad had spoken well of their gods. The news about the reconciliation of Muhammad with Quraysh reached those who had migrated to Ethiopia and consequently some of them returned from their place of residence (Ethiopia).

However, on their return they found that once again the conditions had undergone a change and the angel had brought revelation to the Prophet and had asked him again to oppose the idolaters and had told him that Satan had made him utter those words and he (the angel) had never spoken them!

This is the gist of the fiction of 'Gharaniq' which the orientalists are very keen to quote with much grandiloquence.2

A Simple Accountability of This Fiction

You may suppose that Muhammad was not one of the chosen ones of the Almighty, but his wisdom and intelligence cannot be denied in any case. Now how can a wise man resort to such an act? Is it possible that an intelligent person who observes that the number of his followers is becoming larger day by day and the split in the ranks of the enemy is increasing, should, at such a juncture, do something which may lower down his position before his friends as well as of his enemies?

Can you believe that the person who refused all offers of status and wealth by Quraysh for the sake of the Divine religion should once again introduce polytheism and idol-worship? Not to talk of the Holy Prophet, we cannot expect any such thing even from a reformer or an ordinary statesman.

Judgement of Intellect on This Myth

1. According to the verdict of intellect the Divine teachers are always immune from all sorts of errors on account of the strength of innocence they possess. But if it be agreed upon that they too are liable to commit mistakes and errors in religious matters the very basis of the confidence, which people repose in their words, crumbles down.

Hence, it is necessary that we should test such historical events with the touchstone of our rational beliefs and should solve these ambiguities of history with our firm faith. And it goes without saying that the uprightness of Muhammad in propagation of the Divine religion would not allow the occurrence of such events.

2. The myth rests on the assumption that the Prophet was tired of the responsibility which Allah had laid on his shoulders and was very much perturbed on account of the deviation and remoteness of his people. He was therefore, anxious to find out ways and means to improve their condition. However, wisdom ordains that the prophets should be very patient and forbearing, their fortitude should be proverbial amongst all and they should never think of abandoning their mission.

If this myth be a true and confirmed incident it would mean that the hero of our narrative had lost his fortitude and patience and his spirit had become depressed and tired. This thing is not, however, in consonance with the verdict of wisdom and does not also accord with the Prophet's past and future life, as we know it.

The inventor of this story has ignored the fact that the Qur'an bears testimony to the falsehood of this story, because Allah has given him good tidings that falsehood would not enter his path.

This is a Mighty Scripture. Falsehood cannot reach it from before or behind. (Surah al-Fussilat, 41:42)

Allah has also given an absolute promise that He would protect the Qur'an from every harm throughout human history.

Surely we have revealed the Qur'an and We will most surely be its Guardian. (Surah Hijr, 15:9)

Hence, could it be possible that an outcast (Satan) should overpower the chosen one of Allah, insert falsehood in his Qur'an and make the Qur'an, whose very foundation is laid on campaign against idol-worship, a promoter of the system of idolatry.

It is strange that the inventor of this myth has sung a tuneless song and has calumniated the Oneness of Allah at that spot where a few moments earlier the Holy Qur'an has itself contradicted this calumniation, because in the second and third verses of the same Surah the Almighty Allah says:

He (the Prophet) does not speak out of his own fancy. This is an inspired revelation. He is taught by One who is Powerful and Mighty. (Surah al-Najm, 53:3 - 5)

In spite of this positive tiding how could He leave His Prophet unprotected and allow that Satan should take possession of his mind and thoughts?

We are sorry to discuss this myth to a greater extent than it deserves. But the fact is that our remarks are based on rational arguments and are useful for those who believe in the prophethood of the Prophet. However, these arguments are not sufficient for the orientalists, whose hearts have not yet been illuminated by faith in the Prophet and who quote and explain such myths to prove this religion to be of no consequence. With them, therefore, we should discuss the matter in another manner.

Contradiction of The Story in Another Way

History tells us that when the Prophet was reciting Surah al-Najm, the chiefs of Quraysh, most of whom were great poets and men of letters, were present in the mosque. One of them was Walid who was a sage and poet of Arabia and was well known for his wisdom and intelligence. And all of them heard the surah up to its end and performed sajdah when it ended with the verse necessitating sajdah.

The question, therefore, arises as to why these persons, who were great poets and scholars, were satisfied with only two sentences in praise of their gods, when the verses preceding and succeeding these sentences consist totally of admonition and condemnation of their gods.

It is not known what opinion the inventor of this white lie had formed about those persons, whose mother-tongue was Arabic, who were considered to be the champions in the field of eloquence in the entire Arab society, and who knew the allusions and metaphors (not to speak of explicit things) of their language better than anyone else.

Was it proper for them to be satisfied with the two sentences in praise of their gods and ignore the preceding and succeeding sentences? Not to talk of others, it is not possible to deceive even ordinary persons by fascinating sentences which are placed in a context which consists entirely of condemnation of their beliefs and conduct.

Now we write down the relevant verses and place dots instead of these two sentences. You can very well decide whether these two sentences can be accommodated in the verses which have been revealed in condemnation of the idols:

Have you thought on Lat and Uzza, and, thirdly on Manat?3 Is He to have daughters and you sons? This is indeed an unfair division! They (The idols) are but names which you and your fathers have invented. Allah has vested no authority in them.

Can even a common man agree, on the basis of such contradictory sentences, to give up his enmity against, and to come to terms with a man whose religion he has endeavoured to uproot for ten years, and has placed his very existence in danger for that cause?

Argument against the Myth from The Point of View of Language

The distinguished Egyptian scholar Muhammad Abdoh says: The word 'Gharaniq' has never been used for 'gods' in the Arabic language and poetry. The words 'Gharnuq' and 'Gharniq' are found in the lexicon and they mean a particular aquatic bird or a fair and handsome young man, and neither of these conveys the meaning of 'gods'.

Evidence put forward by some orientalists

Sir Willian Muir has considered the myth of 'Gharaniq' as an established fact of history and the evidence relied upon by him is this: "More than three months had not yet passed since the migration of the Muslims to Ethiopia and they were leading a peaceful life under the protection of the Negus.

They would not have returned to Makkah to see their kith and kin if they had not received news about the reconciliation of Muhammad with Quraysh. It was, therefore, necessary that Muhammad should provide a means for peace and that means was the very story of 'Gharaniq'.

However, one may very well ask this noted orientalist firstly as to why it should be necessary that the return of those people to Makkah was the result of a correct news. In every day life self-interested persons circulate thousands of false news amongst the people every now and then.

It is, therefore, quite possible that some persons coined the news of reconciliation between Muhammad and Quraysh with a view to make the Muslims return to their own country from Ethiopia and consequently some of them believed in the news and returned, whereas others were not deceived and stayed on in Ethiopia.

Secondly, even if it is supposed that the Prophet wanted to make peace with Quraysh why should the foundation of that peace be laid on these two spurious sentences? As a matter of fact it would have been sufficient to win their hearts if he had made a solemn promise to keep absolutely quiet about their beliefs.

In short the return of the migrants is no proof of the correctness of this myth and peace and reconciliation do not also depend upon uttering these two sentences.

Notes

1. 'Gharaniq' is the plural of Gharnuq or Gharniq which means a sort of aquaic bird or a handsome youth.

2. Tarikh-i Tabari, vol. II, pp. 75-76.

3. lf you fill in the blank by inserting the translation of the two sentences in question ('These are gharaniq, who are high in position and their intercession is acceptable') you will certainly observe they will be contradictory to the verses preceding and succeeding them.