THE GREAT PROPHET (SAW) AND HIS SIX TRUE FRIENDS

By Martyred Thinker, Mortaza Motahhari

In the third year after Hegira, some members of the Ozal and Qareh tribes who resided near Mecca and apparently had the same origin with the Quraish tribe went to the honorable Prophet (SAW) and said, "Some members of our tribes have chosen Islam as their religion. Please send some Muslims to our tribes to teach us the meaning of religion and Qur'an and the Islamic principles and laws."

Having heard this, the glorious Prophet (SAW) chose six of his companions to go with them. The leadership of those six was on the shoulders of Marand ibn Abi Marthad or Asem ibn Sabet.

The Prophet's (SAW) messengers set off with that group and left Medina. They continued their way till they arrived in the domicile of the Hozail tribe and they alighted there. The Prophet's (SAW) friends, were resting when suddenly a gang of people from the Hozail tribe attacked them with their swords.

Getting aware of the situation, the Prophet's (SAW) friends immediately went to their weapons and got ready to defend themselves.

The attackers swore that they would not intend to kill them but to hand them to the people of Quraish in Mecca in return for some money. They offered them a deal. Three of them including Asem ibn Sabet replied, "We never accept the meanness of dealing with Moshrekin (polytheists)." They fought and were killed.

The other three, Zaid ibn Dasaneh, Khabib ibn Oday and Abdullah ibn Tareq did accept and yielded.

The people of Hozail bound them with rope tightly and set off for Mecca. Abdullah ibn Tareq, getting near to Mecca, loosened the rope on his hands, set them free and reached his sword but the enemy did not kill the time and murdered him.

Zaid and Khabib, at the end of the trip, were sold in exchange for two captives of Hozail in Mecca.

Safvan ibn Umayyah Qarashi bought Zaid. Safvan's father was killed in the Badr or Ohud Battle so he intended to take his revenge on Zaid and kill him.

He was taken out of Mecca. The people of Quraish gathered to see the scene. Zaid came in with steady steps and there was no sign of fear in his face.

Abu Sofyan was watching the scene. He thought that it was the best time to make Zaid insult the Prophet (SAW) because it was the last moments of his life. He went to Zaid and said, "Do not you wish now that Muhammad were in place of you and we would cut his neck while you would go to your wife and children comfortably?"

Zaid replied, "I swear by God that I do not like to see a thorn in Muhammad's (SAW) foot while I am resting at my house beside my wife and children."

Abu Sofyan glared at him with his mouth open in surprise and then he turned his head back to the people of Quraish and said, "I swear by God I have not seen somebody's friends love that person as much as Muhammad's (SAW) friends love him."

Having seen this love, Abu Sofyan, one of the chief enemies of the Prophet (SAW), confessed that he had not seen somebody to be loved as much as Muhammad.

After a while, it was time for Khabib ibn Oday to be hanged so he was taken out of Mecca. Khabib asked them to let him say his prayer.They let him and he said his prayer very humbly but quickly.

Then he turned to the people and said, "I swear by God that if you did not accuse me of being frightened of death, I would say my prayer more."

They bound him to the gallows tree. Then Khabib's voice was heard while he was praying to God in such a spiritual way that many people were influenced by it and some threw themselves on the ground. Khabib was saying,

This was an example of the love that the Muslims had toward the Prophet (SAW). The basic difference between the school of the Prophets and of the philosophers is this love. The philosophers' students look at them just as a teacher and in fact the philosophers do not have an influence more than a teacher on their students. But the Prophets are like the beloved ones, those who affect the depth oftheir lovers'.(2)

Sources:

1. Attraction and Repulsion of Imam Ali (AS), p 82- 85

2. Attraction and Repulsion of Imam Ali (AS), p 77 Translated by Sayyid Muhammad Reza Sayyid Aqa

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