(Musaylimah al-Kadhdhāb's letter to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ)
Musaylimah al-Kadhdhāb wrote a letter to the Holy Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم,
Make an agreement with me, as long as you are alive, you are a prophet, and when you pass away, I will become a prophet, or make this agreement that you are the prophet of half of Arabia
and I am the prophet of the other half, God forbid, God forbid...
In response to his letter, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ wrote,
I am the Messenger of Allah, while you are a liar (Kadhdhāb)...
When the Holy Prophet wrote Kadhdhāb in the letter, he said, "Who will take this letter to the court of this Kadhdhāb??"
Now, going to his court is very dangerous. There are men in front of him and men behind him because he is the chief of Makkah, and there is also a danger to life. There was a companion who sold dates. He would put a basket on his head and sell dates in the streets of Madinah. He was the father of eleven or twelve children and was physically weak. He was eating dates and quickly stood up, raised his hand, and said, "O Prophet, do not assign the duty to anyone else, I will go."
When he said these words in haste, pieces of dates fell from his mouth onto the faces of the companions sitting in the assembly. One companion said, "O servant of Allah, first eat the dates, you are in such a hurry to speak."
I am devoted to those companions of the Holy Prophet, smiling he said
If someone else is assigned the duty while I am eating, what will I do? I am in a hurry (Allahu Akbar)
The Prophet ﷺ gave him his spear, gave him his horse, and said,
Go to the house of this Kadhdhāb with determination. That companion lowered his gaze with devotion and said, "Beloved of God, do not worry...."
The companions say that he left like a general, his demeanor changed, his ways changed, he left like a brave man. That companion went to the court of Musaylimah al-Kadhdhāb. A person who later became a Muslim narrates that he looked very weak and emaciated, but I saw a strange passion, a strange color, a strange glory....
You know that the companion of the Messenger who took the letter was Hazrat Habib bin Zaid. When he reached the court, he forcefully planted his spear in the court. Musaylimah was startled and said, "Who are you?"
You said with a growl, "Didn't you recognize me by looking at my face that I am a servant of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ? (May I be sacrificed for your introduction, how you introduced yourself with servitude) and further said, "Our faces tell that we belong to the Prophet ﷺ, didn't you recognize who I am?" (Subhan Allah)
Musaylimah said, "How did you come?"
He said indifferently, "I have brought the reply to your letter..."
The custom of the kings was that they did not read the letters themselves. A person would stand next to them and read the letter. So Musaylimah gave the letter to him and said, "Read it." When he read the letter, there was a lot written in it, and it was also written that you are a Kadhdhāb...
This sentence was heard by all the courtiers present there. If it had been in private, it would have been different, and it was possible that he would not have been so angry. But when he heard Kadhdhāb in the crowded gathering, he became furious, his eyes turned red. Hazrat Habib bin Zaid stood firm in front of him. He picked up a sword in anger and said, "Your Prophet has called me Kadhdhāb, what do you think??"
Hazrat Habib bin Zaid said with a smile,
There is no question of thinking, whoever my Prophet calls Kadhdhāb is indeed a Kadhdhāb. Even if you pour the water of seven seas, your lie cannot be washed away." That oppressor thought that Hazrat Habib is in my court, he will be afraid and refrain from calling me Kadhdhāb, but he was a slave of the Prophet...
Musaylimah, trembling with the intensity of anger, said, "Look back, all my soldiers, my guards, swords, spears, daggers, arrows, all my followers are standing behind you." It was as if he wanted to scare Hazrat Habib bin Zaid, but what does he know...
The slaves of Muhammad are not afraid to die
Whether this head is cut off or remains, they do not care...
And it was as if Hazrat Habib bin Zaid was confirming this...
Until we were sold, no one asked about us
Master, you bought us and made us priceless..
Hazrat Habib bin Zaid رضی الله عنه said, "I have twelve children, some of them are breastfeeding, some of them have not yet learned to walk. When I left with the message of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, I did not look back at my children, so how can I look at your guards? Do whatever you want, the slaves of Muhammad ﷺ are not afraid to die..."
Musaylimah struck hard with his sword, and one arm fell off (Allahu Akbar). He said, "Now speak, what do you think now?"
You said, "You are very foolish to test us. Everyone has tested us from Badr to Uhud, and you are still asking what I think. My opinion is the same as my Prophet said (May I be sacrificed for the servitude of Hazrat Habib)"
Musaylimah then struck with his sword, and the other hand was cut off. He said, "I will kill you, give up."
You said, "You are very naive, you scare those who offer the Fajr prayer and ask for martyrdom in their first prayer. Do whatever you want (O Allah, grant this passion)..."
Musaylimah al-Kadhdhāb placed the sword on his neck and said, "I will cut off your neck,"
Habib bin Zaid said
Why don't you cut it?
The narrators say that Musaylimah's hands were trembling, he swung the sword, and the neck was cut off.... Indeed, we belong to Allah, and indeed, to Him we will return 😭
On the other hand, in Madinah, tears came to the eyes of the Prophet ﷺ. The companions رضی اللہ عنہم asked, "O Messenger of Allah, what happened?"
He said, "My Habib has been martyred, and the Lord has opened all the doors of Paradise for him (Subhan Allah)"
If you are loyal to Muhammad ﷺ, then we are yours
What is this world? The Tablet and the Pen are yours...
O honorable companion of the Prophet of Allah, may we be sacrificed for your bravery, may we be sacrificed for your steadfastness, may we be sacrificed for your courage. By the honor of Allah, let us ponder, whose eleven or twelve children are young, and some are not even able to walk. Please think for a moment, and there is no high background, but he was a person who sold dates in the streets of Madinah by placing them in a basket, but the state of love is such that a second is not seen...
O youth of my nation, where have you gone? Even today, their stories give us courage...
And may I be sacrificed for your respected wife. When you received the news that Musaylimah al-Kadhdhāb had killed Hazrat Habib bin Zaid, you gave a very beautiful answer,
Which gives passion to my mothers and sisters today,
She says, "Today Allah has raised my head and I have also been given the status of a martyr's wife." And she said, "He was alone, if it comes to the honor of the Prophet, I will sacrifice these children of mine for the honor of the Prophet..." (O Allah, grant this passion to our mothers)
The way I have read it, it has not been written in that way. I am crying a lot because of this, and there are many such events in the fold of Islam, and even more severe, but by God, the Ummah of Muhammad has never been so helpless as it is now (O my young generation, we have to improve, we have to recover, and O my mothers, you have to teach the lesson of war instead of milk, then the honor of the Prophet will be protected and the passion for martyrdom will be created within us. This is what the lives of the companions and female companions, may Allah be pleased with them all, teach us. Please, we have to recover....
My Lord, grant us the blessing of the life of Hazrat Habib bin Zaid and the companions and the protection of the honor of the Prophet.....Ameen, O Lord, by the grace of the Holy Prophet ﷺ..
In the end, I will only say this
If you do not recover, you will be erased, O Indian Muslims
Even your story will not be in the stories
✍️ A student of Al-Jamiatul Ashrafia ✍️