The Farewell Sermon

A practical demonstration of this proclamation was evident during the sermon, when he addressed an assembly of 125,000 people on the majesty of God and the equality of all humans, the two Companions closest to the Prophet were freed slaves: Bilal al-Habashi, who held the reins of the Prophet’s camel, and Usama bin Zayd, who shaded him with a cloth held above his head. The Sermon Delivered by the Prophet Muhammad on the Day of Arafah: “Indeed, your blood and your wealth are as sacred and inviolable as this day, this month, and this city of yours. Listen attentively: every negative practice from the Age of Ignorance (Jahiliyyah) has been abolished, and the blood-revenge from that era is annulled. The first act of blood revenge I abolish is our own—the killing of the son of Rabi‘ah bin Harith bin Abdul Muttalib. He was a toddler, under the care of a wet nurse from the Banu Sa‘d tribe, when he was killed by the Hudhayl tribe. The usury of Jahiliyyah is abolished, and the first usury I abolish is that of our uncle, Abbas ibn Abd alMuttalib, which is entirely abolished. Be mindful of God regarding women. You have taken them as a trust from God, and they have been made lawful to you as spouses by God’s word. You have rights over them that they do not allow anyone you dislike to sit on your bed, and if they do, you may discipline them gently. And they have rights over you to provide for them and fittingly clothe them. I have left among you something which, if you hold fast to it, you will never go astray: the Book of God (and the Sunnah of His Prophet). You will be asked about me, so what will you say?” They said, “We bear witness