(Radhi Allahu Anha) in Medina
---
Story version:1
It is reported that: Prophet Sulaiman (Alaihis Salaam) (Solomon) and his Sahabi Tubbah Harreri (Tab’a Hamiri) visited Tyeba/Medina which was called Yathrib (Iatribu, Lathrippa).
Prophet Sulaiman (Alaihis Salaam) ordered his Tahath (Throne) to lower down at a place called Yathrib and told his sahabi Tubbha Harreri that this is the place where the Prophet of the prophet's is going to arrive.
Tubbha Harreri was surprised and replied: "This Prophet ( صلى الله عليه وسلم , Is He going to be higher in Status then you?"
Hazrat Sulaiman (Alaihis Salaam) Replied: "If He was here, I would tie His Shoe Laces"
Tubbah Harrieri then requested Hazrat Sulaiman (Alaihis Salaam) if he could stay here and wait for the King of all prophet's?
Hazrat Sulaiman (Alaihis Salaam) Replied, "Yes, if you so wish!"
Then the Sahabi of Hazrat Sulaiman (Alaihis Salaam) started to build houses and asked the people around the caves, hills and huts to come and live there, when the people came and saw they were amazed to see all the houses that were build.
They saw all the houses were one storie, except for one, that was two stories the people enquired; "Tubbah Harreri why is this particular one, two stories?"
Tubba Harreri replied: "After all it is for the one who will be High in Status then all of them, that is why it is double storie and this house I have built is for Him."
These where the first settlements who started to live in Yathrib and Tubbah Harreri was patiently waiting for the arrival of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم).
As time went by Tubbha Harreri was now getting old and weak and the time had come for his farewell.
On his death bed he wrote a letter saying:
To: Ya Rasual Allah
صلى الله عليه و آله وسلم
“I heard from my nabi that You are going to arrive here, my last moment has arrived and I must leave this world, I have built this House for You so please accept it"
Tubbah Harreri then gave this letter to his son and asked him to give this letter to the Nabi of all the nabi's, when he arrives.
… As time and centuries went by through each generation after generation of Tubbah Harreri they passed the letter on until it finally reached Hazrat Ayub Ansari (RA)
When the Holy Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) arrived at Yathrib, He was invited by the settlers to stay at their homes, but the Holy Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) replied: "I will stay where my camel will rest"
So
the camel decided to rest at Hazrat Ayub Ansari's door
step.
it is reported that: The
Holy Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
then asked Hazrat Ayub Ansari:
(" Would you like to give Me My Letter (Imaanat) ")
Hazrat Ayub Ansari was surprised to hear about the letter and replied:
"Ya
Rasool Allah only my father and I had the knowledge of this
letter?"
it is reported that:
The Holy Prophet ( صلى الله عليه وسلم) replied:
("I was watching him, (your forefather) when he was writing the letter")
Allah(SWT) and His Beloved Prophet(s) knows best!
(MH39.2007)
before the arrival of The Holy Prophet (s)
---
----
The Last Prophet
The
incredible story of the King who
sent a letter to our Holy Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
a thousand years before his birth, seeking his intercession!
The following account is narrated in Al Mustazarf, Hajjatullah `alal-Alamīn’ and in Tārīkh Ibne Asākir and translated from an article by Abū Nūr Mohammad Bashīr.
Once
the King of Yemen, Tab’a
Awwal Hamirī, about
2,500 years ago, went on tour of his country and those surrounding
it.
He
was a very rich King indeed. In his entourage he had 12,000 `ulama,
physicians and learned men in addition to his army of 114,000
soldiers. Wherever they went, the procession of these men and
soldiers which marched in much pomp and ceremony that people lined
the roadside to watch them, gathered wherever they went and welcomed
them.
When the entourage reached the outskirts of Makkah,
no one came to see them or welcome them to the town. This greatly
surprised the King. He asked his Chief Minister, “Wherever we have
gone people have gathered in droves to see and welcome us. But not
here. What is the reason?”
The Chief Minister replied,
“Your Highness! There is a House in this town. It is called
Baitullāh. The people of this town and its Khādim have a great
respect for it. Our entourage has no comparison to it. People in
large numbers from places near and far come for Pilgrimage to this
House. In this town no one will heed you or give you any importance.
They respect the holy House more than kings.”
Hearing
this, the King was furious. In his anger, he swore and declared, “I
will raze this House to the ground and have the people of this town
killed.” No sooner had the King uttered these words that blood
began spurting from his mouth, nose and eyes. The blood was so foul
smelling that his companions moved away from him and no one would
come near him. He called upon his Physicians and doctors for
treatment, but no one could help or treat him any way. His condition
got worse. He could not sleep at night and kept on tossing and
turning. He wanted to get treated by any means and at any
cost.
Amongst his entourage there was a physician who was
a God-fearing scholar as well. He came to the King, inspected him,
took his pulse and said, “O King! Your illness is spiritual.
Medicines will not work on you. Did you intend to do anything bad or
evil, your Highness? If you did, He will pardon you and relieve you
of your misery and illness if He wishes should you repent.”
Taking
the Physician’s advice, the King immediately changed his evil plans
to destroy the Ka’ba and to kill the people of Makkah. No sooner
had he repented that the foul smelling blood stopped spurting from
his mouth, nose, and eyes. He was completely cured. He was very happy
for his recovery. He ordered a silk ghīlāf for the Ka’ba to be
made and a gift of 7 gold sovereigns and 7 pieces of silk clothing
for each of the residents of Makkah.
Having recovered, the
King of Yemen then continued with his tour. His entourage next
arrived in Medina
al-munawwara.
The
`ulama in his group had studied the Books that
had been revealed to the Prophets who had come before them. They took
the soil of Medina and smelled it and looked at the features of the
place. The signs of the place where the last Prophet of Allah (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
would make his Hijra to, as indicated in these Books, were all
present here. These `ulama were overjoyed and made a commitment to
stay put in this town. They wished to live in Medina and stated that
if they were fortunate, one day they would meet the Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم).
But if they didn’t, the dust from the Holy Prophet’s (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
sandals would land on their graves. This at least, they thought,
would bring blessings and be their salvation.
The
King, having heard the `ulama and Counsellors, agreed to build four
hundred homes for them as well as a big house for our Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم).
He
left instructions that
when the Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم) came
to Medina, he
should stay in comfort in that house. He
also left enough money to provide for the needs of the four hundred
`ulama for a long time.
The
King then dictated a letter to
his Chief scholar and requested him to present it to Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
when he came to Medina. He
further requested of him that should he die before meeting the
Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم), the
letter be treasured and passed on to his children and their
descendants and presented to the Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم) whenever
he came to the town.
Having made these arrangements, the King left for Yemen.
The
letter was passed down from the Chief Alim to his descendants. After
more than 1,000 years, the number of children from the four hundred
`ulama had increased greatly and comprised a large percentage of the
inhabitants of Medina.
The
letter after this long time came to be in the hands of Hazrat Abū
Aiyūb Ansārī (ra), who had given it to his chief slave, Abū
Laila, for safe-keeping.
When he people of Medina heard
that Prophet Muhammad (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
was coming to Medina from Makkah on his Hijra, they started making
preparations to welcome him. The inhabitants decorated their houses
and cleaned the streets. Each of them wanted Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
to be welcomed into and grace his house.
The
Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم),
to overcome this problem, came up with a proposal that he would let
loose the reins of his camel. He would stay at the house outside
which the camel would come to a halt and sit down.
The
camel was let loose. It went down the streets and stopped outside the
house which the King of Yemen had built for the Holy Prophet Muhammad
(صلى
الله عليه وسلم).
Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
and the people came to this house.
Abū
Laila was then asked to bring the letter which he had for
safe-keeping.
Abū
Laila appeared before Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم with
the letter which had been passed down from generation to generation
over a thousand years from King Tab’a Awwal Hamirī.
Prophet
Muhammad (صلى
الله عليه وسلم),
seeing Abū Laila approaching him, asked him,
“Are
you Abū Laila?”
Abū
Laila was stunned, having his name mentioned by the Holy Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم).
He was surprised that the Holy Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم) had
just arrived from Makkah but knew his name.
The
Holy Prophet Muhammad (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
then said, “I
am Muhammad Rasūl Allah (صلى
الله عليه وسلم). I
will have the King of Yemen’s letter that you have for me.”
The
Holy Prophet Muhammad (صلى
الله عليه وسلم then
looked at the letter and said, “Congratulations
to my pious servant Tab’a Awwal Hamirī.”
The letter from King Hamirī stated, “O Prophet of Allah, I pledge my faith in you and in the Book that will be revealed to you and I follow the path of your religion. If I am fortunate to see you, it will be with great pleasure. However, if this is not possible, I would request that you intercede for me and not to forget me on the Day of Judgment. I believe in your Prophethood. I seek your ba`yat (pledge of allegiance) in advance of your arrival. I swear that there is only one Allah and Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم is his true Prophet.” (Mīzānul Adyān)
---Asad ibn Karab was the king of Yemen.
This powerful
King on an expedition to Syria, on the way came to Yathrib and
subjugated it.
Leaving his son behind as his
representative, he went on. As soon as he left, the city rose in
revolt and killed the Yemeni prince. On hearing of the revolt, the
King returned and raged the city to the ground.
To help
the city dwellers, some
scholarly Jewish priests met
the King.They
tried to impress upon him the importance of the city
of Yathrib and its divinity.
They told the King
that they had concluded interpreting prophecies and other divine
signs that Yathrib was the city, to where the last Prophet
would migrate.
From thence, this would be his abode from
where he would direct his mission and this would be the last resting-
place of the chosen one, until the ‘Day of Judgement’.
The
city would be named ‘Tyeba’ meaning Sacred. Angels
protect the city and whosoever tries to destroy it would be
destroyed.
After
that, they described the qualities of the last Prophet and the
distinction his religion will enjoy until the Day of Judgement. The
King was an honest, noble and large-hearted man. Believing in the
words of the learned priests, he took up the true religion of the
time.
Later,
he built a Palace in the town and given that to an heir with an
instruction to the descendents that would occupy the palace at the
time of the advent of the promised Prophet.
He
was advised to present himself before the Prophet and request him to
kindly consent to live in the palace, since it was built for
him.
Thence
on an heir lived in the palace waiting for the promised one.
When
the time came and the Prophet arrived, Hazrat Ayub Ansari was the
occupant of this palace. On
hearing the news of Hazrat Muhammad’s (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
arrival, he rushed to the spot and invited the Prophet to occupy the
palace.
Hazrat
Ayub Ansari lived
a few yards away from where the Holy Prophet Muhammad’s صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
camel rested on the ground. The Prophet ( صلى
الله عليه وسلم )
gracefully accepted the invitation. On the first occasion,
Hazrat Ayub Ansari gave the letter of his ancestor king to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم).
Whence it was written in the King’s own handwriting:
“I declare that Ahmed is the Messenger of God. If I were alive and met him I certainly would be his servant and cooperate with him” (Wafah al-Wafah, part-I, Zuzbul Kulub).
It
is noteworthy that, later, the King went to Mecca with a
delegation of Savants and laid a cover on the Ka’aba made
of Yemeni fabric, for the first time. From Then
on, it became a custom to cover the House of the Lord, which
continues until today (Kassasul Qur’än).
According to the
letter, Hazrat Ayub Ansari wanted to give the whole house to
the Prophet, but The holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) disagreed. Then
Hazrat Ansari requested him to occupy the first floor, but the
Prophet keeping his companions’ comfort in the mind chose the
ground floor (Wafah al-Wafah).
Note: The mention of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم), dhikr and gatherings in a majlis have been held in the past and will continue in the future. The fortunate have been able to receive the blessings of such gatherings (fā’id).
This
article shows the Prophet (s) had knowledge of the past as well as of
the future.
It
is worth noting that the King had made Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
a wasīla and
looked forward
to intercession from the Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم)
on the Day of Judgment and the Prophet (صلى
الله عليه وسلم) congratulated
him for his faith.
We
also learn that to decorate houses and celebrate his birth is the
Sunnah of the Sahabas and to have processions, decorate houses and
streets as we do today is not a bid’a.
---
When
the Holy Prophet (s) entered Madinah he
told the people to allow his camel to go her own way for “she
is guided by Allah.” All
of the Muslims desired that he would lodge with them. Finally the
she-camel knelt, but the Prophet (s) did not dismount. The animal
rose to its feet again, ambled ahead for some distance, and then
turned back and knelt in the same place it had before. Masjid-e-Nabwi
was erected on this very spot.
- Adjacent to the spot
where the camel knelt was the house of Abu
Ayyub Ansari (r)
who hurried to lift the saddle from the camel and took it to his
home. The Prophet (s) remarked humorously, “A
man must follow his saddle,” and
went along with Abu Ayyub.
Asad bin Zurara (r.a.) took hold of the
halter, so he was allowed to take care of the camel.
- According
to other reports,
lots were cast and was drawn in the favour of Abu Ayyub Ansari
(r).
- The
house of Abu Ayyub Ansari was double-storied.
When
it was settled that the Prophet (s) would stay at this place, he
offered the Prophet (PBUH) to stay on the upper storey but the
Prophet could not agree to this proposal, as he felt that people
frequently coming to meet him would disturb his (Abu Ayyub’s)
family.
Thus the ground floor was made vacant for the Prophet (s).
Abu Ayyub (r) sent meals to him twice a day and whatever he left uneaten was shared by Abu Ayyub and his wife. He would look at the marks of the Prophet’s (s) fingers on the food and place his own fingers at the same spots as a source of blessing.
Although the Holy Prophet (s) had stayed at the ground floor according to his own wish, it was quite unbearable for Abu Ayyub (r.a.) and his wife that they should live upstairs while the Prophet (s) was downstairs. They were much disturbed to think that in this way they were showing disrespect to the Prophet (s).
One
night they could not sleep and passed the whole night sitting in a
corner of the roof. In the morning
Abu Ayyub (r) came to
the Prophet (s) and said,“O
Prophet of Allah, we could not sleep at night but passed the whole
night sitting in a corner of the roof.” When
the Prophet asked the cause, he replied, “Our
parents may be sacrificed on you, we always remain thinking that we
are committing disrespect to you. Last night this feeling grew to the
utmost and we could not sleep.” After
this he requested, “O
Prophet of Allah, have mercy upon us and kindly shift upstairs. We
are your slave and shall remain satisfied under your feet.”
The Prophet (s) granted his request and moved upstairs while Abu Ayyub and his wife moved to the ground floor.
Abu Ayyub Ansari’s (RA) full name was Khalid ibn Zayd ibn Kulayb
King Toba
"Their great ancestor, Shamul, was a physician and councillor in the service of King Toba, who was a king in Yeman.Toba, during the time of his reign, marched into Arabia and arrived in Yasrab, which was then the name of the town of Medina. He had four hundred physicians and councillors with him, of whom Shamul was the chief and they all told the king that they intended to settle down there as the last of the prophets would immigrate to that place and live there and they wished to be reckoned amongst his followers.
Toba wrote a letter by his own hand, declaring that he embraced Islam in anticipation, and delivered it to Shamul, with instructions that the letter was to be treated as a legacy to be delivered in succession until it was handed over to the prophet by some one of his descendants.
The letter was delivered to the Prophet one thousand and fifty three years after by the writer’s great ancestor, Khalid bin Zed, commonly known as Hazrat Abu Ayub Ansari.”
(Khan
Bahadur Sheikh Sadiq Ali (Shaikh Sadik Ali Ansari) in his works
published (Muslim Tribes in Sindh,
Balochistan and Afghanistan), in 1901.)