Sacred Emigration

Emigration to Madina marks a turning point in the life of the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, as well as in the history of Islam. Belief, emigration and holy struggle are the three pillars of a single, sacred truth. They are the three taps of a fountain from which the water of life flows for the soldiers of truth to drink from, so that they may convey their message without being wearied and, when the opposition is too formidable to overcome, set out for a new land without regard for their home, property and family. The Prophet's emigration to Madina is so significant in the history of Islam and so sanctified that the virtuous men and women around him were praised by God as the Emigrants, and those who welcomed them so warmly to Madina as the Helpers. In addition, the beginning of the era of this religious community was marked, not by the birth of the Prophet or by the first Revelation or such victories as Badr or the conquest of Makka, but by the emigration to Madina.

Despite its significance, emigration is, of course, not an easy thing to achieve. When the believers came to Madina to settle after years of persecution in Makka, they had neither any provisions with which to manage their families, nor any houses to live in. Moreover, some of them were extremely poor, and the others, who had earned their lives by trade, were left with no capital. The Muslims of Madina were mostly farmers, and the commercial life of the city was thoroughly controlled by the Jewish community. Another problem worthy of note is that the people of Madina had decided to make 'Abd Allah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul their chief, just before the arrival of God's Messenger. The settlement of the Messenger brought this plan, and the hopes of Ibn Ubayy ibn Salul, to nothing, and he consequently became a bitter enemy of God's Messenger and, as chief of the hypocrites, never refrained from making conspiracies to ruin him. In addition, the Makkan polytheists would certainly not leave the Prophet to himself in Madina; they had contacted Ibn Ubayy ibn Salul in order to prevent the spread of Islam in Madina. Ibn Ubayy sent them the news: It is not something to fear that he spreads his religion here. The main danger lies in the possibility that he may ally with the Christians and Jews against paganism. That is the real threat to you.

After he settled in Madina, God's Messenger ordered the building of a mosque, and himself took part in the work of building. The importance of the mosque for the collective life of Muslims is unquestionable. They come together there five times a day and, in the Presence of God, their Lord, Creator and Sustainer, they increase in belief and submission to their Lord, to the Prophet and to their religion, and strengthen their solidarity. Especially in the first centuries of Islam, mosques functioned, as well as being places of worship, as centres of learning. The Mosque of the Prophet in Madina was, in the time of the Prophet himself and his immediate successors, the centre of government as well.

Immediately after his settlement in Madina, God's Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, established brotherhood between Muslims, particularly between the Emigrants and the Helpers. They loved each other and were very close to each other. For example, Sa'd ibn Rabi' took his emigrant brother Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf to his house and said: Brother, you have left everything you have in Makka. So, this house, with everything in it, belongs to both of us. Besides, you do not have a wife here, while I have two. Whichever of them you like, I'll divorce her, so that you may marry her.

Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf answered him in tears: Brother, may God bless you with your wife! Please show me to the city bazaar so that I may do some business. (1)

The brotherhood between the Emigrants and the Helpers was so deep, so sincere and so strong that the Helpers shared everything they had with their emigrant brothers. This lasted for some time. However, when the Emigrants were accustomed to their new environment, one day they came to God's Messenger and said:

O Messenger of God! We emigrated here purely for the sake of God. But, our Helper brothers concern us to the extent that we are afraid we will consume up here in the world the reward of our good deeds, which we expect to get in the Hereafter. Also, we feel much indebted to them. Please, ask our brothers to allow us to earn our living ourselves.

God's Messenger sent for the Helpers and told them of the situation. The Helpers unanimously objected to the offer of the Emigrants, it was unbearable to them to be separated from their brothers. In the end, in order to save the Emigrants from the feeling of indebtedness, the Helpers agreed that the Emigrants would work in the Helpers' fields and gardens in return for wages until they could build their own houses. (2)

As a second step in solving the immediate problems which appeared after the Hijra, God's Messenger signed a pact with the Jewish community in Madina. According to this pact, which some scholars describe as a first constitution of the city-state of Madina, the Muslims and Jews were confederated as two separate, independent communities. (3) Since, however, God's Messenger had the initiative in making this pact and acted as an arbiter in all disputes and disagreements, the new city-state of Madina was under the overall control of the Muslims.

In order to guarantee the security of this state on the part of the Muslims, God's Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, ordered the establishment of a new bazaar. Until then the economic life of Madina had been under the control of the Jewish community. Shortly after the establishment of the new bazaar, Jewish domination of the economic life of the city declined as the Jews no longer monopolized commerce in the city.

No sooner had the Muslim community of Madina begun to become established and grow in strength than they had to respond to attacks from inside and outside. After the victory of Badr against the Makkan polytheists, the Muslims met them again, this time, at the foot of Mount Uhud. The easy victory won by the Muslims at the beginning of the battle was unfortunately followed by a reverse due to some neglect on the part of the archers. Seventy Muslims were martyred and the Messenger himself was wounded. The Muslim army took shelter on the mountain and were prepared to counter any further attack by the enemy. However, lacking enough courage for a further attack, the enemy forces left the battlefield for Makka. Nevertheless, they changed their mind half-away and again decided to march upon Madina. Informed of this decision, God's Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, gave the order to assemble and mobilize. A single order of his sufficed for the Companions to collect themselves, even though they were ill or wounded. His every call was a breath of life for their souls, a breath that could revive old, rotten bones. Busiri says:

Were his value and greatness to be demonstrated by miracles, The bones that have rotted away were revived by calling his name.

The half-crushed army set out to counter the enemy. Almost all of them were wounded in different degrees, but no one desired to remain behind. In describing the situation, one Companion said:

Some of the Companions were unable to walk. They said: We desire to be present at the front where God's Messenger has ordered us to go. Even if we are unable to fight, we will stand there with spears in hand. They were carried either on shoulders or on backs.