Yathrib eagerly awaiting Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw)

Yathrib had taken on an extraordinary air and intense excitement and eagerness had overtaken the whole city. In every alley and neighbourhood people impatiently awaited Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw).

He entered Yathrib on Friday. People were overjoyed and could not stop looking at the resplendent countenance of Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw). Each tribe, which he passed through, desired the honour of his presence and requested him to take up his abode with them. Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw), refusing all these offers, said that the camel, which he rode on, was inspired and would take him to the proper quarter. The camel proceeded on to the eastern sector and knelt down in the open courtyard of the Banu Najjar, near the house of Khalid ibn Zayd, known in history as Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, the then head of the Banu Najjar family. He was delighted to be fortunate to have the honour of Prophet Muhammad's (saw) presence.

Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) took up his temporary residence in the house of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari for seven months, until the Masjid-E-Nabawi, with proper quarters for himself, was built in the courtyard where the camel had stopped.

Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) settled in Yathrib and there laid the foundations of Islam and a magnificent culture based on justice and faith.

After the blissful entrance of Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) into Yathrib, its name was changed into Medinat ul-Nabi, meaning 'the City of Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw)'. That year, the year Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) migrated (Hijrah/Hijrat 622CE) at the age of 53 years from Makkah to Yathrib (Madinah), was recognized as the origin of history (beginning of the Islamic Era or the Hijrah calendar), due to this significant historical event, the triumph of righteousness and justice. The illuminating sun of Islam gave new life to the people. They discarded all the old superstitious beliefs and thoughts and all the wrong deeds and manners of the past, replacing them with the perfect life-giving culture of Islam.

Note: When we say 1430 Hijrah, it means that 1430 years have passed since the time of Prophet Muhammad's (saw) flight (Hijrah) from Makkah to Medinah.

The existence of sympathy, sincerity, and harmony among the people of a society makes that society a living one - one that is fit for human life and evolution, in which all can find salvation and progress and can enjoy each other's sympathy and sincerity.

In the process of establishing such an ideal human society, Islam does not pay the least bit of attention to such considerations as race, language, skin colour, and geographical location. Rather, this holy religion regards all Muslims as equal. It looks only at the people's faith in Allah (SWT), which is the root of all unity.

'Islamic brotherhood' is the phrase best revealing this all ­ embracing unity. This meaningful, clear expression in Noble Qur'an describes this Islamic precept: 'Truly the faithful are brothers.' (49:10)

After having settled in Medinah and after building a mosque (Masjid-E-Nabawi) that was indeed the military and constitutional base of the Muslims, Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) took an excellent initiative. He laid the foundation of Islamic brotherhood, individually between the people of Medina (known as Ansar/Helpers) and the people of Makkah (known as Muhajir/Emigrants), so that great unity and sincerity would be engendered in Muslim society and so that the emigrant Muslims would know that, though they had lost a number of their friends and relatives and had been forced to leave their homes, in return, they had gained brothers who were much more loyal and sympathetic from every point of view.

Therefore, besides the general fraternity and brotherhood that exists among all Muslims, Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) concluded contracts of brotherhood among his followers. He proclaimed brotherhood to be a general law amongst the Muslims and taking into consideration their ranks and positions, established the bond between every two persons by making one the brother of the other; Abu Bakr with Umar ibn al-Khattab, Uthman with Abd ar-Rahman and so on. Amirul Mumineen, Imam Ali (as) had stretched himself on the ground, when Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) approached him and said: "Arise, O' Abu Turab! By Allah (SWT)! I have not made you the brother of anyone for I have kept you for myself" and said, 'Ali is my brother.'

One of the requirements of Islamic brotherhood is that whatever a Muslim desires for himself, he should desire for his brother in Islam, and he should help his Muslim brothers by any means possible, whether by his wealth or by his speech or by any other means.

It was the principle of Islamic brotherhood that made the Ethiopian Bilal ibn Rabah and the Persian Salman Farsi brothers and two of the best companions of Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) of Islam. In the light of Islamic brotherhood, many deep-rooted enmities were reconciled and divided groups were united. This unity requires that all Muslims share each other's sorrows and joys like members of a large family. Muslims should be sincere and affectionate toward each other, and their watchword should be unity and brotherhood.

Islamic brotherhood firmly holds all Muslims responsible toward each other and establishes an all-embracing responsibility so that Muslims cannot be heedless of each other's troubles and problems but every Muslim must, within his own abilities; endeavour to solve the problems of Muslims and to create possibilities for the advancement and promotion of Islam. Thus Islam began to flourish with its enormous luminosity.

Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) said:

"Shall I not introduce 'a believer' to you? A believer is the one whom other believers trust with their souls and wealth. Shall I not introduce 'a Muslim' to you? A Muslim is the one from whose hand and tongue other Muslims are safe... It is unlawful (Haram) for a believer to do wrong against another believer, or leave him/her in a lurch, or backbite against him/her, or suddenly reject him/her."

"Believers are brethren, their lives are equal to each other and they are as one hand against their enemy."

It was hardly three years since the people of Madinah had embraced Islam and had started to worship Almighty Allah (SWT). The young boys in the city were given a job to eradicate the worship of idols. Wherever they saw an idol, they destroyed it and set fire to it.

One day, young boys came to know that Omar bin Janab, the chief of Bani Salma tribe, had still preserved his idol and worshipped it. In order to impress upon him the uselessness of worshipping an idol made of wood, they removed it from his place and threw it down a pit. The chief of Bani Salma tribe, on tracing the idol to where it was lying brought it back, washed it and kept it in its original place. But the next day again it was removed and thrown into the pit.

The chief of Bani Salma tribe was very much disturbed at this or the last he brought home this idol and cleaned it. He then put his sword around its neck and said to the idol: "If henceforth anybody comes to you, promptly take action and kill him with the sword."

On the next day, the idol was again missing. This time he found it tied to a dead body of a dog. There was no effect at all of the sword which he had tied around the neck of the idol. This incident made him lose faith in his man-made wooden idol. He abandoned the idol worship altogether. On becoming a Muslim, he uttered a poem as under:

"Alas O my idol! If you were my god, you would not have reached this stage and I would not have seen you in the pit along with a dead dog. I have now put my faith in the Almighty Allah (SWT), from Whom come all blessings. It is He Who has freed me from darkness of ignorance."

This is one of the examples of how the young Muslim volunteers of Medinah helped Mohammad, the Prophet of Islam (saw) in putting an end to idol worship and spread the true message of Islam.