Abyssinia, Ta’if and the Pledges of Aqaba

Last time

Before we start: last time, in The conquest of Makka and the Farewell Sermon, you learned these points. Here they are again on one card. Keep them in mind, because today builds on them.

Three doors, one closed, one opened

When Makka became too hard, the Muslims looked for safety and support elsewhere. Some found protection across the sea in Abyssinia. The Prophet, peace be upon him, tried Ta'if and was driven out. And at Aqaba, a small group from Yathrib opened the way to a new home. Each event has numbers, names and a lesson to learn.

Why Abyssinia?

The Muslims in Makka, mainly those without tribal protection and slaves, were being persecuted by the Quraysh. An ayat was revealed about the earth being spacious for believers, 39.10. The Prophet allowed some followers to go to Abyssinia to seek protection from its king, the Negus, in the 5th year of prophethood, 614 or 615. Uthman and Ruqayya went in the first migration of twelve men and four women, sixteen in all. The Quraysh chased them, but the migrants boarded a boat before the Quraysh arrived.

The second migration

Some returned when they falsely heard the Quraysh had accepted Islam. The persecution increased, and a second group of 83 men and 19 women, 102 in all, was led by the Prophet's cousin Ja'far ibn Abi Talib. Amr ibn al-As and Abdullah ibn Abi Rabi'a followed, and asked the king to return the Muslims. The Negus asked the Muslims for their account. Ja'far described how they had lived before Islam. The Makkans accused them of strange beliefs about Jesus. Ja'far recited verses from Sura Maryam. The Negus drew a line in the sand, saying the difference was as thin as that line, and was moved to tears. He let the Muslims stay in peace and freedom, and the Quraysh envoys were sent away with their gifts. The Muslims stayed until they moved to Madina.