The Succour of God

WOMEN AND ISLAM free themselves from the clutches of the Quraysh, coming to Madinah, and then not being returned to the Quraysh despite the latter invoking the terms of the peace treaty. For example, when Umm Kulthum bint ‘Uqbah ibn Abu Mu’ayt escaped to Madinah, she was not returned even when two of her brothers came to take her back. (Sirat Ibn Hisham, Vol. 2, p. 362) The Quraysh considered this refusal a pact violation and quickly seized this opportunity to defame the Prophet. It is remarkable, however, that they soon ceased to protest on this score, and considering that they were the Prophet’s direst enemies, it is not easy to understand how this came about. No satisfactory answer is to be found in the books of Sirah and Commentaries on the Quran. Qadi Abu Bakr ibn al-’Arabi writes that the Quraysh ceased to protest because God had miraculously silenced their tongues. (Ahkam al-Quran, Edited by ‘Ali Muhammad al-Bajawi [Beirut, 1987], Vol. 4, p. 1786). There can be no doubt about it: it was one of God’s miracles, although not in the usual sense of the word. It is perhaps easier to arrive at the truth by examining the wording of this particular condition of the pact. Here we quote Bukhari’s version, which may be taken as the most authentic: “You will have to return any of our men who come to you, even if they have accepted your faith.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith No. 2731-2732) The expression “any of our men” (rajul) gave Muslims a