Emigration—From Makkah to Madinah

doing so will cause blessings to descend on their families and properties. But the emigration of the Prophet is perhaps the only example of people opening their doors to destitute and forlorn refugees when they had nothing to gain and probably a great deal to lose by doing so. The action of the Ansar was based entirely on their dedicated commitment to the cause of Islam. They accommodated the emigrants in their homes, treated them as brothers and sisters, and shared their possessions with them. And they did all this, fully conscious that their action involved much more than economic sacrifice. They knew full well that what they were doing would arouse the hostility of the most powerful factions in both Arabia and Persia. There are no words more fitting than those of ‘Ali to describe them: “They were true to their word, steadfast in adversity.”140 When the Muhajirun forsook their own country for Madinah, every Ansar was eager to extend hospitality to them. They even drew lots among themselves for the privilege of being able to entertain such noble guests. They handed over the better part of their properties to the Muhajirun. And all this even though, in their oath of allegiance, it was explicitly laid down that others would be given priority over them. Though they had made the most extreme sacrifices for the sake of Islam, they did not show the slightest disapproval of this clause.141 Despite all the assistance, the Prophet did not have an easy life in Madinah. Apprehensions that the whole of Arabia