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Prophet Social Conscience at Mecca Era
Prophet Social Conscience at Mecca Era
As the early life of the Messenger of Allah, pbuh, showed his sensitive social conscience, mainly his readiness to extend help and relief to those who needed them, so did his life after revelation, and so did all the righteous companions who believed in him and followed his steps.
This social conscience on the part of the prophet, pbuh, was not on specific occasions of on specific days, but this conduct accompanied him all days and hours of his life. The reader of his biography can see this profoundly clear on the days on Mecca as well as his days in Madinah. Oppression, torture and harassing the meek believers dominated most days of early Muslims in Mecca, who also sustained pain, poverty, hunger and expulsion from their homes, and even killing. In spite of all the abovementioned, solidarity and relief showed clearly in this period. For example, Ibn Massoud relates saying"
The first believers were seven: the Messenger of Allah, pbuh, Abu Bakr, Ammar and his mother Sumaya, Suhaib, Bilal and al Mekdad. As to the Messenger of Allah, SAWA, Allah harnessed his uncle Abu Taleb to protect him. As to Abu Bakr, Allah harnessed his family to protect him.
As to the others, the polytheists in Mecca took them and dressed them with iron bars and placed them in the scorching sun. All of them were forced to say what the unsayable (under torture), except Bilal who endured the unbearable for the cause of Allah. He opted to disobey their orders, making them vent their wrath on him, handing him to children who dragged him on the roads of Mecca while he was only uttering Ahadun Ahad( which means no god but Allah" [1]
The Prophet's solidarity with and relief of his companions.
The prophet, pbuh, wasn’t able to extend financial aid to the Muslims owing to his poverty. Nor was he allowed using force since Allah hadn’t yet permitted fighting at this period of time.
The Muslims then were scattered individuals within a society rejecting their religion and even denying them freedom of belief; they even used the most heinous types of torture to bring them back to idol worshipping. However, the prophet, pbuh, offered them some different kind of relief, it was the good word and glad tiding.
The prophet, pbuh, extended moral support to the family of Al Yasser, the father, mother and son, all of whom sustained ordeals and torture for the cause of Allah. Jabir related that the Messenger of Allah, pbuh, passed by Ammar and his family while they were under torture, and said to them "Oh, the Yassers, I bring you good news, you will be rewarded with the Paradise "[2]
The prophet, pbuh, had nothing material to offer to the Yassers , the symbol of loyalty and sacrifice. They were not slaves in need of freedom, nor did he have the power to rescue them form pains and torture. All that he could do was to bring good news to them and give them glad tiding with forgiveness of Allah and the Paradise, urging them to be patient so that this blessed family would set an example to the successive generations[3]
He, pbuh, also stood in moral support with Khabbab, assuring him that Islam would dominate one day. Khabbab related saying: We complained to the Messenger of Allah, SAWA, when he was at Kaaba wearing a cloak, and said to him,… "Wouldn’t you find us ways and means for victory? Wouldn’t you pray to Allah for us? The prophet, pbuh, then said"…….., I swear by Allah that our Mission will be so accomplished that people would ride from Sana'a to Hadhramaut with nothing to fear but Allah, so safe that even the wolves would go with the sheep, but you aren’t patient"[4]
Solidarity and moral support from the prophet, SAWA, to his companions was one of the factors of their steadfastness and, by extension, victory. It was even one of the factors of grooming those men to spearhead goodness and favor for the world. He, SAWA, even extended his favor to a polytheist whom he didn’t know, only because this man was oppressed by Abu Jahl and Quraish 's elite failed to support him. Ibn Isaac in his book on the prophet's biography relates the hadith of the man who sold Abu Jahl some camels and failed to pay him their price.
The story states that Quraish advised the man to go the Messenger of Allah, pbuh, to help him to regain his right from Abu Jahl; they also sought to make fun of Abu Jahl for the hostility they knew between him and the prophet, pbuh. Ibn Isaac said: The Messenger of Allah, pbuh, walked to him and knocked at his door. "Who is at that"?. Abu Jahl asked. " I am Mohammed", the prophet said. Shivering with fear, Abu Jahl jumped to meet the prophet who said to him" Give this man his due". "OK, you will not leave until I give him his due", Abu Jahl said.
Actually he paid the man the price of camels and he went and told the story to the people of Mecca. Condemning Abu Jahl, they asked him" Curse on you! We have never seen you do what you did today". Abu Jahl countered by saying to them "when Mohammed knocked at my door and I heard his voice, I got panicked. while I was going to meet him, I saw something like a huge camel over his head, and I then thought that I would be eaten by this beast if I rejected to give the man his money"[5]
