THE STORY OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD - Rasulullah Preached in Ta'if

In the month of Shawwal the 10th year of Prophethood, Prophet Muhammad, who was accompanied by Zaid bin Harithah, went to preach to Taif. Rasulullah hoped that the Banu Thaqif would accept the teachings of Islam. Every time he passed a village, he conveyed the teachings of Islam to them. But no one accepted it. Taif is a summer place for the people of Mecca because of the cool air and sweet grapes. This city is also the center of worship Lata (not Latta). If the Banu Thaqif became followers of Prophet Muhammad, then the position of Lata would be lost and could cause hostility with Quraysh.

When arrived at Taif, Rasulullah SAW met Taif figures to invite them to convert to Islam, but they refused. The Tsaqif leader was three brothers, namely Abdu Yalail ibn Amr ibn Umair, Mas'ud ibn Amr ibn Umair, and Habib ibn Amr ibn Umair ibn Auf ibn Aqdah ibn Ghirah ibn Auf ibn Tsaqif. One of them has a wife from Quraish.

When Rasulullah called on them to convert to Islam, one of them said, "I am ready to pull out the cloth of the Kaaba (Ka'bah) and throw it away if Allah sends you as a Prophet". The other said, "Is there no one else sent by Allah besides you?" The third person said, "For God's sake I don't want to talk to you. If you are a Messenger of God, you must be very dangerous if I reject you. If you lie, I should not respond".

Prophet Muhammad was in Ta'if for 10 days, but each time he met figures in the city, they gave negative responses and drove him away. They invited ordinary people to attack Rasulullah and berate him. They also pursued and overpowered Rasulullah until his feet bled. At that time Zaid bin Harithah tried to protect him with himself, until his head was wounded by the attacks of the Taif residents. Both of them were not pursued anymore when taking refuge in the garden owned by Utbah and Syaibah the children of Rabi'ah, about 3 miles from the city of Taif.

Rasulullah immediately rested and sat in the shade of a vine. There he complained about all the difficult problems to be faced, "O God, to You I complain about my weakness, lack of my tactics and humiliation in front of humans. O Most Gracious of the owners of love, You are Lord of the weak, You are my Lord, to whom will you give me up? To the far and sour face? Or to the enemy who wants to master my business? As long as you are not angry with me, then I do not care (what happened to me), but Your forgiveness is wider (more I hope) for me. I take refuge with the light of Your Face which makes the darkness bright, and the affairs of the world and the hereafter become good, so that You do not lower Your anger towards Me, or anger towards Me. You are the one who has the right to rebuke me until You are willing and have no power or strength other than You".

Rabi'ah's two children felt sorry for the condition of Rasulullah and Zaid who looked unfortunate. So they ordered they Christian slave named Addas to pick a sprig of grapes and give it to Rasulullah. Rasulullah received the gift and read Bismillah before eating it.

Addas responded to the basmalah reading that Rasulullah said, "It is a speech that is not from the inhabitants of this country".

Rasulullah asked Addas, "What country are you from? And what is your religion? ".

"I am from Nineveh village," he replied.

"It is the land of a man who is pious, Yunus (Jonah) bin Matta", said Rasulullah.

Addas asked in amazement, "How did you know about Yunus bin Matta?".

Rasulullah replied, "He is my brother. In the past he was a Prophet and I am also a Prophet".

Hearing the answer, Addas immediately kissed Rasulullah's head, also his hands and feet.

Addas immediately approached his two employers.

His employer said, "What's wrong?"

"Yes sir, there is no one above the earth who is better than him. He has told me about things that only a Prophet knows about, " Addas said.

The employer snapped at him, "Woe to you Addas. Don't leave your religion, your religion is better than that person's religion. "

So Prophet Muhammad returned to Mecca with sadness. According to history, while on the way, Allah SWT sent the angel Gabriel along with the mountain angel who was ready to wait for Rasulullah's order to turn the two mountains in Mecca to be inflicted on the inhabitants of Mecca, namely Mount Abu Qubais and Mount Qaiqa'an. But Rasulullah only replied, "I hope, Allah will remove from their ribs, descendants who worship Allah Almighty only and not associate anything with Him".

Finally Rasulullah returned to Mecca with protection from Muth'im bin ‘Adi.

Rasulullah has a high level of patience to preach. The bad and rude actions he received did not cause a feeling of revenge in his heart. The events experienced by Rasulullah in Ta'if were also known by Quraysh so that they increasingly aggressively disturbed Rasulullah. Rasulullah remained persistent in preaching for the spread of Islamic teachings.

Reference:

·         Mubarakfuri, Syekh Shafiyyur-Rahman, and Haidir, Abdullah (Translator). 2005. Sejarah Hidup dan Perjuangan Rasulullah. Riyadh: Kantor Dakwah dan Bimbingan bagi Pendatang Al-Sulay.

·         Haekal, Muhammad Husain, and Audah, Ali (Translator). Sejarah Hidup Muhammad.

·         Al-Mubarakfuriyy, Syeikh Safy Al-Rahman. Seerah Nabawiyyah, Al-Raheeq Al-Makhtum.

·         Abu Muhammad Abdul Malik bin Hisyam Al-Muafiri. Sirah Nabawiyah Ibnu Hisyam. 2000. Jakarta Timur: Darul Falah.