Let's see how long you can tolerate this type of life.
At last, Abu Jandal! I have been always saying:
isn't it time for you to free yourself of your father's shackles!
Yes, I've at last broken free of my father's shackles.
I am free of my father's shackles.
Hardly a few of them returned when many more have broken loose.
Yes. Yes.
When they were few, we feared the consequences.
Now we should be more apprehensive. We better come up with a strategy.
What we feared was that the Abyssinian king might side with them
and this could affect our trade there.
Our strategy, then, should be to win over the Abyssinian king
and turn him against them.
How can this be achieved when he has been kind to them and granted them security?
They have turned away from both our religion and his.
He has bishops whom he is keen to please.
How about sending him some of us who are articulate and good in debate.
To urge him to strike against our relatives?
No, but to return them to us so that we deal with them.
Who can undertake this task?
At last, your time has come, Amr.
And soon your time will come, Abu Sulaiman.
I don't want it coming soon.
Your majesty!
My friend, Amr Ibn Al-Aas No formalities among friends.
The king's condescension is an honour and a favour.
Hide from Makkah. You know what I like, Amr.
Sit down, Amr. Have you rested after your long journey?
How couldn't I have done when I am at the king's palace?
Amr, have you come on business or as an immigrant?
God forbid that I should come to you like those men who have broken away from us.
You mean you haven't adopted their religion.
Were I to choose a religion other than that of my people,
I would have adopted your religion, Sire.
But these lads have abandoned their people's religion
and did not follow yours.
They invented a religion which neither you nor we know.
Amr, is that what you have come to me for? To denounce them?
I have been sent to you by the chiefs of their people. These are their fathers,
uncles and clansmen, requesting that you return these lads to them.
They are better aware of what they take against them.
But they speak differently.
Would you think, your majesty, that they would tell you what condemns them?
You have known our chiefs and elders, or some of them.
They have been carrying business in your land, buying and selling,
bringing benefit to your land and ours.
You have experienced their sincerity and honesty.
Have they ever lied to you?
These people who have come to my land, favouring me over all others
will not suffer injustice.
You, the Arabs,
are well known for keeping your pledges of protection.
A man may extend protection to the murderer of his own uncle
and no one would harm him.
Do you want me to do what you consider beneath your moral values?
How come, Amr?
You have been our elders' favourite long before these people have come to you.
This is how this business and friendship between you and us have come to flourish.
Is it fair, Sire, that our elders should lay a solid foundation,
then these people who have berated their fathers and denounced their elders
should enjoy what their elders did
while they accuse them of ignorance and disbelief?
By God, I wouldn't hand them over until I have called them here
and asked them in front of you about what you are saying about them.
No, your majesty. I appeal to you by God not to do so.
Why not Aren't you saying the truth?
Am I to be tested with them, your majesty.
Am I to be placed with them at the same level?
Aren't they your blood relations? How could you be different?
In every community there are low individuals. These are the lowest of us.
No way. By God, you have to prove your case.
If they are as you say, I will hand them over to you.
If they are not, I will protect them
and will treat them kindly as long as they stay in my land.
It is Amr Ibn Al-Aas, the master of resources and tricks.
Falsehood cannot have any argument against the truth,
even though he may be resourceful.
What shall we say to the man tomorrow when we attend him?
It is as they said: we left our people's religion and didn't embrace Negus's faith.
By God, we will only say what we know, and what our Prophet has told us,
regardless of the consequences. We shall not lie and shall not dodge.
Jaafar, you are the Prophet's cousin. You be our spokesman.
Your majesty!
Peace be to you, Sire.
You know what your friend says about you.
Tell me about this religion of yours by which you broke away
from your people's faith and adopted neither my faith, nor any other.
Sire,
in our recent past we were ignorant people: we worshipped idols,
ate carrion, committed all sorts of sins, didn't maintain ties with our kinsfolk
and behaved badly to our neighbours. Our overruling maxim was 'might is right'.
This continued to be our situation until God sent us,
from among ourselves, a messenger whose good name,
honesty, sincerity and integrity were well known to us.
He called on us to believe in God, the one and only God,
to be united in His worship, and to stop worshipping all idols
which we and our forefathers used to worship alongside Him.
He commanded us always to speak the truth
and be honest, and to be good to our relatives.
Yes, Sire. He urged us to be good to our relatives
and neighbours, to preserve life and shed no blood, to refrain from sin,
perjury, robbing the property of orphans entrusted to our care,
and making false accusations against honourable women.
He also commanded us to devote our worship to God alone,
ascribing to Him no partners of any sort.
We gave him a favourable response, believed in him
and followed these Divine commandments he conveyed to us.
Our people, however, assaulted us and tortured us
to compel us to revert to idolatrous worship
Having been overpowered, oppressed and denied the freedom to practice our faith,
we sought refuge in your country, choosing you in preference to all other rulers,
hoping that in your refuge, Sire, we would suffer no injustice.
Have you learnt something of his revelations?
Yes, Sire.
Then read it to me.
In the name of God, the Lord of Grace, the Ever-Merciful.
"Zachariah!
We bring you the happy news of (the birth of) a son whose name shall be John.
Never have We given this name to anyone before him.
(Zachariah) said: 'My Lord! How can I have a son when my wife is barren,
and I am well advanced in years?'
He said: 'Thus it is. Your Lord says, "This is easy for Me;
even as I had earlier created you when you were nothing.'
(Zachariah) said: 'My Lord! Give me a sign.' He replied:
'Your sign will be that for full three nights (and days) you will not speak to people.'
He then came out to his people from the sanctuary and signified to them
to extol God's limitless glory by day and by night.
(To his son We said): 'John! Hold fast to the book with strength.
We granted him wisdom while he was still a youth,
as well as, by Our grace, compassion and purity;
and he was (always) God-fearing, and kind to his parents.
Never was he haughty or rebellious. So peace was upon him
on the day he was born, and on the day of his death,
and will be on the day when he shall be raised to life again."
This comes from the same source as Jesus's revelations.
You may leave now.
By God, I will never hand you over to anyone.
I will have no one scheming against you.
Amr, is this what you call idiocy?
I thought you were wise and bright.
No. By Him who sent down the Gospel, your wisdom hasn't failed you,
but you are stubborn.
Amr, your people have chosen you for this mission
as they are aware of your intelligence, sound argument and your mastery of debate.
Do not let us down.
Allow me a second round, your majesty.
Just one more round before you make your final decision.
Won't you give up? Why didn't you say today all you want to say?
I am only human. I recalled that they are our own relatives
and I felt compassionate towards them.
I then looked at your face and I felt you were in sympathy with them.
I realized that even my best argument won't cut much ice with you.
Give me another chance tomorrow,
and I will give you what is enough to exterminate them all.
Woe to Amr! What does he want?
We thought he put his argument and we put ours.
Tomorrow we'll know.
Now, Amr. These are your own people. They have come back.
What do you have to say today?
Your majesty, they say something very serious about Jesus.
Ask them about him.
You've heard what your friend has said. What's your answer?
Our view is that taught to us by our Prophet (peace be upon him):
"Jesus is God's servant and messenger. He is His spirit and His word
delivered unto virgin Mary."
What you have just said about Jesus does not go beyond the truth
by the width of this stick.
You may go now. You are safe in my land.
Whoever harms you will be brought to justice.
I would not harm any one of you for a mountain of gold.
Give this man his gift back. I don't need it.
God did not take a bribe from me when He gave me my throne back.
I won't take a bribe or appease people in a case of His.
Sire, you heard from us what we believe about Jesus, son of Mary.
Wouldn't you ask Amr hat he says about him?
It is you, Amr, who follow neither these people's faith nor mine.
Well. You can tease me as you please. You were not the one to face what I faced.
People here were always saying that
it will be only a matter of time and Amr would bring them all back, tied in chains.
Amr can lure the whales in the sea to come to Makkah.
Didn't I tell you once that
you are half way to success when you put your cleverness where it is applicable!
Our elders were unfair to me
when they sent me to seek the extradition of our people
when they revere those whom Negus reveres,
such as Jesus and his mother, Zachariah and John.
Both of them denounce idol worship. How can I win against all this?
Wasn't the camel I gave you as an offering enough for you
to support me in my difficult position?
- Ayyash, Salamah. - Umar!
How did Abu Al-Hakam release you?
My mother continued to refuse to speak to him
ever since he imprisoned me with Salamah. When she saw him, she would cry,
wail and slap herself on the face.
He took pity on her and released me with my brother Salamah.
Does Abu Al-Hakam take pity on anyone?
For all his faults, he loves his mother.
Besides, he is sure that we won't immigrate to Abyssinia,
since no one is immigrating these days. He accepted our firm pledges on this.
How happy I am to see you both.
And here are Suhail Ibn Amr's two sons.
Their father struck with them
the same deal as our brother Abu Al-Hakam made with us.
Abu Jahl!
- Peace be upon you. - And you.
- Salamah! - Welcome, Abdullah.
Shall we do the tawaf together and then pray?
Yes, indeed. We then make haste to see the Prophet wherever he may be.
It won't be long before he comes to pray. We will stand guard for him.
What do you want to do now that this affair is in its seventh year?
You are well aware that in all this trouble Muhammad is the main perpetrator.
By God, you will not have any comfortable life as long as he is alive among you.
If we kill him, this whole affair will come to an end.
It will revert to its original status.
Can the Hashim clan fight you all at the same time?
United, you are richer and you command a much larger fighting force.
Yes, they are protecting him now.
However, if we form our plot and assassinate him,
I don't think they will venture into their own destruction.
The wise among them will say: we haven't let our man down while he was alive.
We have done our best to protect him.
The others got to him as we were taken unawares.
Now that he is gone and even if we all die, that won't bring him back to life.
This situation is hopeless.
You, descendants of Abd Al-Muttalib, people of the Hashim clan!
You know what those people are plotting against my nephew.
They have made up their minds this time.
As from today, he cannot be secure from their designs.
We shall seek security here in these quarters of the Hashimite clan.
We better stay here with Muhammad providing guard for him and protecting him
until God has settled the issue between us and our own people.
Those of you who do not follow Muhammad's faith
should do it in support of your blood relative.
If they don't, they will be held in disgrace for the rest of time.
Whoever join me in this are most welcome.
If any do not wish to join, let them decide now.
They must not let us down if matters get worse.
- We support you and will protect our man. - Yes indeed... Yes indeed.
That's fantastic! I am to starve myself and my family,
and be isolated from my people for Muhammad's sake!
I am not with them. I haven't gone inside their quarters.
I, I am with you... I support Al-Lat and Al-Uzza, and I support you.
We have noted your attitude, Abu Mu'attib.
I will not give them a cluster of dates, even if they starve to death.
How firmly you support us, Abu Lahab!
Yes, indeed. This is true support!
I wish all my adversaries were like him, and none of my supporters is like him.
I have supported you, haven't I?
Perhaps you will be pleased me and will support me as I have supported you.
They had their aim and we had ours.
They wanted to prevent anyone to get to Muhammad in that pathway.
We shall foil their purpose. We will prevent people from going to them.
How can that be done?
We make pledges and write them down on a scroll
which we will hang inside the Kaabah.
That we shall not sit with the Hashimites, nor deal with them.
We shall not inter-marry with them.
We shall neither sell them anything nor buy anything from them.
We shall not allow any means of sustenance to reach them,
nor accept any agreement with them.
We shall not show them any mercy, nor have any social contacts with them,
nor speak to them, nor enter their homes...
until they surrender Muhammad to us.
When people begin to go to bed, let Muhammad be seen going to his bed
by anyone who is plotting something against him.
When people are asleep, then send him to some other place to sleep.
This is safer for him.
We'll do that.
Also, gather all available food
and give to everyone their needs.
Make sure to give priority to the weak and those with young children.
We do not know how long this boycott will last,
or whether some of our friends or Muhammad's companions...
can get some food to us.
Quraysh has placed strong guard on the entrances.
Woe to Quraysh. What have they done to us?
The Prophet calls on people to be kind to their kinsfolk
and they sever the relations.
Had it not been for his order that we must not fight them,
I would have done. But we will remain Patient
until God has willed to ease things for us
Hush! Be quiet, Abdullah so that the people won't notice us.
Move away! Move away!
We won't do until we know your purpose. Where are you going, Umar?
May your mother lose you! Who are you to question me?
If you don't move away I will have you and your two friends beaten up.
- Get off my way. - We won't let you pass.
What fools! Are you precipitating your own death?
I don't need to fight you, because of the Prophet's order.
But I will defend myself, my child and my property.
If you insist, come and fight me. I will not be blamed, then.
Let's go, son.
- Were you not afraid of them, father? - Yes, I was.
Had God not made people fear, they would have destroyed themselves.
Bravery, Abdullah, is to overcome your fear in tight situations,
and to stir in your opponent's heart more fear than you have.
He is as keen to preserve his life as you are.
Do you understand what I have said?
Now when we meet God's messenger (peace be upon him),
go down on your knees and kiss his hand, and ask him to pray for you.
I'll do that, father.
Abu Bakr!
You are always in the lead.
- Have you met anyone on the way? - God has taken care of me.
Sufficient is God as Guardian.
Sister, do you have nothing to stop him crying?
- My milk has dried up. - Relief, if He so wills.
We have been waiting for it for three years.
Oh, I seek God's forgiveness.
Ali, go to Muhammad and stay with him wherever he is.
How about you, father?
We have endured all this trouble for his sake.
We must not let any harm come to him, or all our efforts would have been in vain.
Your father is approaching the end of his life. I don't fear death,
but I fear that Quraysh may harm Muhammad after my death
as they cannot hope to do now.
You, Ali, are in the prime of life.
Make sure to protect Muhammad more than you defend yourself.
Father, I sacrifice myself for him.
I will spare no effort in defending and protecting him.
Move back, move back.
Let not hunger make you selfish and ill-mannered.
Everyone will have something of these goods, God willing.
People of Quraysh, listen to what I have to say.
Are we to go on enjoying our food, and wearing the best clothes,
while the Hashimites are starving; no one dare buy from them or sell to them?
By God, I shall not sit until this oppressive covenant of boycott is torn to pieces.
Liar! By God, it shall not be torn.
You are a worse liar. We didn't approve of it when it was written.
We do not approve of what is written there and will not respect it.
May you be guided aright. It is as you say: total disgrace.
May I ask what have you gained out of it?
Your only gain is that other Arabs have come to distrust you.
They say: what is the matter with Quraysh, ill-treating its own sons
and severing its own ties of kindred. This is contrary to Arab values.
They also say: how come that Muhammad's companions are enduring all this hardship
without lifting a finger to defend themselves.
It must all be because of the truth to which they adhere
or because of a superior morality they have learnt from their prophet.
The total sum of your action is to raise the standing of Muhammad
and his companions, while lowering your own.
Hence, many Arabs have embraced his faith.
Were he to order them to fight you, they would do so.
Totally wrong is this action. Let us go to this covenant...
and tear it to pieces, fearing no repercussions.
This was planned in the darkness of the night. It was deliberated elsewhere.
Say what you will. I am the first to tear it up.
What is this? The woodworms have eaten it up...
and spared the name of the Almighty?
Our people.
We absolve ourselves from taking part in this unfair covenant of boycott.
We will appease no one at the expense of our integrity.
Where's God's messenger? Where is he? Take me to him.
- What news are you bringing, Umar? - A happy one for you.
God has enabled some people to abrogate and tear up the covenant of boycott.
- Is this true? Have you seen it? - Yes, and so did Abu Talib,
but I came ahead of him to give you the good news. He is following me.
Take me to the Prophet.
Thank God; thank God.
Move out of your pathway and go to your homes.
- God is the Greatest. - God is the Greatest.
May God grant you full recovery, father.
Brother, here is God's messenger.
Have I done my best to ensure your protection, my nephew?
I wish my life would extend, not because I love life,
but to continue to support you.
But it is time for me to go.
Here is my son, Ali,
and your two uncles Hamzah and Al-Abbas.
They are your closest allies.
They will never let you down or give you up.
When you meet my son, Jaafar, give him my greetings
and tell him that I urge him to do what I have urged Ali, Aqeel
and my other children.
We will soon meet him according to our agreement.
We must not differ in his presence.
Whoever of you is still hesitant about this faith, let him turn back now.
Otherwise we will all meet him having made our resolution.
By God, we have come all the way from Yathrib only for this purpose.
We won't turn away from the truth after it has become clear to us.
Lead us to him.
Yes, messenger of God.
We give you our pledges on the terms you have specified:
that we will not associate any partner with God, nor steal,
nor commit adultery, nor kill our children,
nor lie about who fathered our children, nor disobey God in anything reasonable.
However, please send with us one of your companions
to instruct us and our people in this religion of the truth.
At this time next year, we will bring with us a large number of people
so that together with them we renew our pledges to you on the terms you specify.
Messenger of God, your hand to accept our pledges.
The essence of the faith without it nothing of the details is valid.
is belief in God's oneness. Therefore, if you want to be a Muslim,
you must start by declaring your belief that
there is no deity other than God and that Muhammad is God's messenger.
This means disbelieving in falsehood and all idols
and refraining from all the ignorant practices of our people.
God has made lawful to us all that is wholesome
and forbidden us only what is evil.
He has commanded us to attend to our prayers, pay zakat
and act with kindness to others.
He has also ordained that all rights be fulfilled to those entitled to them,
and judge between people in accordance with justice,
even though it goes against ourselves, our spouses, children and siblings.
We must not hesitate to judge in favour of someone opposed to us,
if justice requires that, for justice must be done.
The only criterion by which our people achieve distinction is piety.
Islam also commands us to be kind to our kinsfolk
and to discard blind favouritism of our people.
We must also love for our brethren what we love for ourselves.
We are united in God's obedience, so that we are like a solid structure,
in which each part supports all other parts.
Edited by: Ahmed Mersal. Poofread by: Doaa Timecoded by: Sanaa Yousrey. 11