In any case, when the Quraish witnessed the Muslims safely slip their hands, and go on to lead a life of peace and security in Abyssinia, the fire of their fury was further enflamed. Ultimately, they decided to send two of their exceptional associates, ‘Amr bin Al-‘Āṣ and ‘Abdullāh bin Rabī‘ah to Abyssinia. Along with this delegation, not only did they prepare expensive gifts for the Negus himself, but gifts for all his courtiers were also prepared, which were mostly composed of hide, for which Arabia was especially renowned in those days. As such, this delegation departed with great splendour. The purpose of this delegation was to bring the Muslims back, so as to subject them to their cruelties once again. Therefore, upon reaching Abyssinia, ‘Amr bin Al-‘Āṣ and his associates met with the courtiers of the Negus and presented them with gifts, and through them they acquired way to the court of the Negus. After the presentation of these gifts, they implored the Negus in the following words:
“O your Royal Highness! Some of our foolish people have forsaken their ancestral religion and have fashioned a new religion, which opposes your religion as well. They have caused disorder in our land, and some of them have run away and reached here. Thus, we implore you to send them back with us.”
The courtiers concurred, but the Negus, who was a sagacious king, refused to issue a one-sided verdict, saying, “These people have come under my protection. Until I hear their testimony, I cannot say anything.” Therefore, the Muslim immigrants were brought before the royal court, and addressing them, the Negus said, “What is this matter and what is this new religion that you have fashioned?” Ḥaḍrat Ja‘far bin Abī Ṭālibra responded on behalf of the Muslims, saying:
“O King! We were an ignorant people, we worshipped idols, we ate the flesh of dead animals, we were engaged in adultery and fornication, we severed ties of kinship, we dealt with our neighbours in dishonesty and the powerful among us usurped the rights of the weak. In this state of affairs, Allāh sent His messenger to us, whose nobility, truthfulness and honesty was known to all. He taught us the Unity of God, forbade us from idol worship and gave us teachings of truthfulness in speech, honesty and kind treatment to kith and kin. He taught us to treat our neighbours well and stopped us from adultery, lying and the usurpation of the wealth of orphans, and he held us from bloodshed. He instructed us to worship Allāh. We believed in him, and followed him, but for this reason our people were displeased with us and subjected us to miseries and hardships, and tortured us and desired that we abandon our faith by coercion, until we finally left our homeland, saddened, and took refuge in your sovereignty. O King! We hope that under your rule we shall not be subjected to brutality.”
The Negus was greatly touched by this address and said to Ḥaḍrat Ja‘farra, “Read to me the word which has been revealed to you.” Upon this, Ḥaḍrat Ja‘farra very melodiously recited the opening verses of Sūrah Maryam. Upon hearing these verses, the Negus’ eyes filled with tears, and in a state of great emotion he said, “By God, this word, and the word of our Messiah [peace be upon him] seem to be the rays of a common light source.” Upon this, the Negus said to the delegation of the Quraish, “Go back, for I shall not send these people with you.” The Negus returned their gifts as well.
But the ferocious ambassadors of the Quraish were not ones to be silenced so easily. The next day, ‘Amr bin Al-‘Āṣ gained admission into the court of the Negus and said, “Your majesty, are you also aware of what these people say about the Messiah [peace be upon him]?” The Negus called for the Muslims once again, who were worried that since we do not believe in the Messiahas as the son of God, perhaps the scheme of ‘Amr bin Al-‘Āṣ will succeed. But these people were not ones to refrain from speaking the truth, even beneath the shadow of swords. Hence, when the Negus asked, “What are your beliefs about the Messiah [peace be upon him]?” Ja‘farra clearly responded:
“In light of our belief, the Messiah is a servant of God, not God Himself. However, he is an honoured messenger of Allāh who came into being by the word which He gave to Mary [peace be upon her].”
The Negus picked up a straw from the ground and said, “By Allāh, as per your statement, I do not find the Messiah [peace be upon him] greater than even this thorn.” Upon this statement of the Negus, the court bishops were greatly outraged, but the Negus did not care in the least, and the delegation of the Quraish returned unsuccessful.
Following this, the immigrants to Abyssinia lived in peace for quite some time. However, most of them returned to Makkah, near the migration of Yathrib, while others remained in Abyssinia, until the Holy Prophetsa migrated to Madīnah and the battles of Badr, Uḥud, and the Confederates occurred. It was at that time that these people returned to Arabia. This was the era in which the Holy Prophetsa was returning from the battle of Khaibar.
In the beginning, when most of the immigrants were still in Abyssinia, the Negus was confronted by a war from one of his enemies. Upon this, after mutual consultation, the companions decided that if required, we should also support the Negus. As such, they sent Zubair bin Al-‘Awwāmra to the battlefield across the Nile River to gain insight as to the state of affairs, while the rest of the companions prayed continuously to God for the victory of the Negus. Therefore, after a few days, Ḥaḍrat Zubair bin Al-‘Awwāmra returned to inform that by the Grace of Allāh, the Negus had won victory.1
1 For details of the aforementioned instances refer to:
* As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Malik bin Hishām, pp. 245-250, Irsālu Quraishin ilal-Habashati fī Talabil-Muhajirīna ilaiha, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001)
* Sharḥul-‘Allāmatiz-Zarqānī ‘alal-Mawāhibil-Ladunniyyah, By Muḥammad bin ‘Abdul-Bāqī Az-Zarqānī, Volume 1, pp. 503-506, Bābul-Hijratil-Ūlā ilal-Ḥabashah, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebehon, First Edition (1996)
* Tārīkhuṭ-Ṭabarī, By Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad bin Al-Jarīr Ṭabarī, Volume 2, pp. 236-237, Bābu Dhikril-Khabri ‘ammā kāna min Amri Nabiyyillāhisa ‘inda Ibtidā’illāhi Ta‘ālā......, Dārul-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, Second Edition (2002)
* Aṭ-Ṭabaqātul-Kubrā, By Muḥammad bin Sa‘d, Volume 1, pp. 98-100, Bābu Dhikril-Hijratith-Thāniyati ilā Arḍil-Ḥabashah, Dārul-Iḥyā’it-Turāthil-‘Arabī, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996)
* Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, Kitābu Manāqibil-Anṣār, Bābu Hijratil-Ḥabashah, Ḥadīth No. 3876