Lessons and Wisdom

When the Prophet ﷺ that although he escaped persecution himself many of his followers did not, he said to them: "If you went to the country of the Abyssinians, you would find there a king under whom none suffers any wrong". So some of his Companions set off of Abyssinia; and this was the first emigration in Islam.

Amongst the lessons and wisdoms that can be extracted from this passage of history are:

1. The initiation of migration by the Prophet not only shows us that Hijrah, or migration for the sake of Allah, is legislated in Islam but also indicates that it is to be exercised when one can no longer practice their faith where they live. In such a case one should move to another land where he can; even if that be another non-muslim country.

2. Preservation of religion takes precedence over the preservation of wealth and well-being. As the Muslims had to sacrifice both wealth and well-being in order to secure an environment in which they could worship Allah.

3. Allah had decreed that the Prophet and his disciples face much difficulty and persecution in order to illustrate that strive and struggle are an intrinsic part of being a believer as well as remaining patient and steadfast upon them. It is said that through trial and tribulations does Allah make clear the truth and distinguishes it from falsehood.

The 'Satanic Verses'

The so called ‘Satanic Verses’ were allegedly recited by the Prophet in public while he was at the Holy Mosque at Mecca in this year, the fifth year of prophethood shortly after the first emigration to Abyssinia.

There are numerous and contradictory reports of what was recited but most accounts suggest that the Prophet spoke of the high status enjoyed by three notorious pre-Islamic Arabian deities, referring to their role as intermediaries between Allah and man. Whether because they believed that the Prophet had finally relented and accepted a religious compromise, abandoning his insistence on absolute submission to the One Allah or whether because they were moved once again by the eloquence of the Prophet’s message whose undeniable beauty was a source of great wonder and annoyance to them, the disbelievers around the Prophet prostrated themselves in reverence upon hearing the verses.

Muslim reaction to the ‘Satanic Verses’ has been varied. Many scholarly authorities freely mention the historical reports in which the verses are mentioned, but point to their historical unreliability. Others, while accepting that the account of the verses does not meet the strict tests for authenticity established by Muslim scholars to verify reports of the Quran or the Prophetic hadith, nevertheless seem willing to accept the reports, seeing in them a sort of theological truth. For these scholars, the traditional account stands as confirmation of the Divine warning of the Devil’s attempts to distort the Divine message.

The ‘Satanic Verses’ incident is a warning to human beings not to become not to be amongst those who, for their own devilish reasons, would distort the text or, what is much more common and destructive, the meaning of the Divine message. The story reminds us, they argue, that one must be careful not to extend God’s infallibility and purity to one’s own self. The potential for corruption and distortion is present in all human attempts to speak about the Divine unless God himself undertakes to protect His word, its text and meaning “Indeed We have sent down the Reminder. Indeed We stand guard over it,” the Qur’an reassures us, reminding us, for we do need reminding, that man is incapable of arriving at the truth and of subsequently protecting it, without Allah’s continual grace.

Despite the fact that it was used to discredit the Prophet, the ‘Satanic Verses’ incident turns out to be a very persuasive argument for his veracity and truthfulness. For whether he recited the famous verses or not, all historical accounts agree that the subsequently the Prophet continued to preach his unrelenting message of tawhid, the peace found by submission to the One true Allah. Had the Prophet been nothing but a cynical charlatan, the reaction of his enemies who bowed in prostration with him upon hearing their gods honored by the same Prophet who had spoken so eloquently of their powerlessness before, would have represented something of a triumph. A cynical, calculating charlatan would not destroy this success by returning to the message of submission to the One Allah. Yet that is precisely what the Prophet did, continuing his call of tawhid – one which had brought him considerable harm and little popularity or power.

It is curious that the rich theological debate engendered by the ‘Satanic Verses’ has recently been dismissed by some, who have used the phrase to justify their prejudiced attacks on Islam. These corrupt imitations of art are offensive not because they convey an artistic truth, but because in their bigoted attacks on Islam they also amputate the complex history and narrative which they claim to portray. In the end, such works become a parody of knowledge itself and an attack against the whole enterprise of truth.

Edicts and Rulings

This year the chapter of al-Kahf was revealed narrating the story of 'the people of the cave'. Within the Quranic chapter there is a subtle indication of migrating to preserve ones faith,

When you have separated yourselves from them and everything they worship except Allah, take refuge in the cave and your Lord will unfold His mercy to you and open the way to the best for you in your situation.

The chapter of az-Zumar was also revealed containing a similar indication:

For those who do good in this world there is good and God's earth is spacious. The steadfast will be paid their wages in full without any reckoning