THE FESTIVAL OF MUBAHILA

1.      فَمَنْ حَآجَّكَ فِيهِ مِن بَعْدِ مَا جَاءكَ مِنَ الْعِلْمِ فَقُلْ تَعَالَوْاْ نَدْعُ أَبْنَاءنَا وَأَبْنَاءكُمْ وَنِسَاءنَا وَنِسَاءكُمْ وَأَنفُسَنَا وأَنفُسَكُمْ ثُمَّ نَبْتَهِلْ فَنَجْعَل لَّعْنَةُ اللّهِ عَلَى الْكَاذِبِينَ

If any one disputes in this matter with thee, now after (full) knowledge hath come to thee, say: "Come! Let us gather together, - our sons and your sons, our women and your women, ourselves and yourselves: Then let us earnestly pray, and invoke the curse of Allah on those who lie!"

When Islam began to spread there were some tribes, which professed Christianity. After the expedition to Tabuk some Christian tribes were converted to Islam. Some Christian tribes chose not to change their faith, but they accepted the suzerainty of the Muslims and agreed to pay them an annual tribute.

There was a large Christian community in Najran. In 631 C.E., The Holy Prophet invited them to accept Islam. In response, they challenged the Holy Prophet to a Mubahila. The Mubahila was an ancient way of ascertaining the truth. In a religious contest, each of the disputing parties was required to take a solemn oath that they were right and true, and called on God to wreak His vengeance on them if they lied. It was believed that in such cases, the liar was visited by the wrath of God and was destroyed. The Holy Prophet accepted the challenge and asked the Christians of Najran to send a deputation to Madina.

A deputation of the Christian priests headed by their chief Aqib accordingly arrived in Madina. They were dressed in fine silken robes, and wore golden rings on their fingers. When dressed thus, they waited on the Holy Prophet in the mosque; the Holy Prophet did not pay any attention to them, and did not even return their salutation. Greatly puzzled they left the mosque, and upon meeting Uthman complained to him that the Prophet of Islam had invited them to Madina, but he had paid no attention to them when they had visited him in the mosque. Uthman took them to Ali, he told them that indifference of the Holy Prophet was due to the fact that they were dressed in silk finery, and were loaded with jewellery. He advised them to cast off their jewellery and be dressed in simple cotton robes. When they had changed their dress, Ali took them to the Holy Prophet in the mosque.

This time, the Holy Prophet welcomed them and made them sit near him. He told them that when they had first come to him, he had turned his head away because Satan accompanied them with finery and jewellery. Thereafter the Holy Prophet entered into the discourse with them, and the talk centred round the personality of Jesus Christ. The Christians wanted to know what was his opinion about Jesus Christ. The Holy Prophet said that like other Prophet he was a Prophet of God. The Christians next asked whether he regarded Jesus Christ as a Son of God. The Holy Prophet said the God is far above having a wife or a son, and as such Jesus is not a Son of God. The Christians then posed the question: if Jesus had no father and his mother Mary had not sinned, what then is the status of Jesus if he is not the son of God. The Holy Prophet said that they would have their answer the following day. At night the Holy Prophet had a revelation about the true nature of Jesus. When the Christians met the Holy Prophet the following day, he told them that the likeness of Jesus with Allah is as the links of Adam. Adam was born without a father and so was Jesus born without a father, but neither Adam nor Jesus was the Son of God.

At this reply of the Holy Prophet, the Christians priests felt stranded, but to keep up appearances, they desired that a Mubahila be held. The Christians named five priests who were to take part in the Mubahila. The Holy Prophet nominated five persons who were to take part in the Mubahila on behalf of the Muslims. These included the Holy Prophet himself, Ali, Fatima, Hasan and Husayn. The Holy Prophet did not dominate any of his wives in this behalf. The nomination was confined to such persons who had blood relation with him. The Holy Prophet declared that the Mubahila would be held the following day. At night, the Christians could get no sleep. They felt that truth shone in the eyes of the Holy Prophet and to invoke the curse of God with people like these would invite destruction for the Christians. The following day when the Christian priests waited on the Holy Prophet, they said that they had neither the conviction to profess Islam, nor the strength to enter into any disputation or fight with the Muslims. They said that while maintaining their own faith, they would accept the dominance of the Muslims and pay an annual tribute. The Holy Prophet accepted the offer, entered into a treaty with them, and allowed them to return to Najran. The way in which the Christians gave the challenge of Mubahila in the first instance, and then backed out of it, was a confession of failure on the part of the Christians, and their acknowledgment of the supremacy of Islam as a faith.

Mulla Mujahidali Sheriff

mulla@almahdi.org.uk