THE QORAISH ENVOYS MEET THE NAJÂSHI, REQUEST HIM TO SURRENDER THE REFUGEES, AND JA’FAR BIN ABU TÂLEB HARANGUES HIM IN THAT ASSEMBLY.

When A’mru A’ass and O’mmârah Bin Wolid arrived in Abyssinia, they were, by means of the gifts and offerings they had brought, introduced through the favourites and courtiers to an audience, on entering which they prostrated themselves before the Najâshi according to the custom of the country, presented their letters of introduction, and said: ‘A number of young men of our nation have adopted a religion different from ours, as well as from your majesty’s —i.e., from Christianity—have without our knowledge come to this country, and have comfortably established them­selves therein. Our petition to your majesty is that they be surrendered to us, so that we may convey them back to our people.’ This request was also supported by a patriarch who, being a courtier of the Najâshi, had been suborned by gifts from the Qoraish, and seconded the wishes of A’mru and of O’mmârah. The Najâshi, however, being incensed with anger [at this demand], said: ‘By God! I shall not do that. I shall not surrender persons who have taken refuge with me, and have settled in my country, into the hands of their enemies. I shall, however, call them and hear what they have to say.’ In accordance with this decision, the Enjil [Gospel] was produced, the Christians were convened, and the refugees sent for. When the king’s message had been communicated to the professors of Islâm, they consulted with each other what to say if they were to be examined concerning the tenets of their religion; but the Flying Ja’far,* who was one of the emigrants, said: ‘The best for us is to profess what Allah and the apostle have published.’ All assented to this declaration, and elected him for their spokesman. They went to the assembly, but when they entered it they did not perform the salutations and prostrations required by the usage of the country, and this want of respect having been noticed by the courtiers, Ja’far said: ‘By the command of our prophet we prostrate ourselves to no one except to the only true God.’ These words awed the Najâshi, and he said to Ja’far: ‘The envoys of the Qoraish want me to sur­render you to them.’ Ja’far then exclaimed: ‘O king, ask the envoys whether they claim us as slaves.’ This question A’mru hastened to answer, saying: ‘Allah forbid that these men should be slaves. They are all free and noble.’ Ja’far continued: ‘Are we under any obligations to them which they might claim?’ A’mru replied: ‘They are indebted to none of us.’ Ja’far further queried: ‘Have we shed the blood of any person for which they might retaliate?’

Amru: ‘We have none of these claims.’

Ja’far: ‘Then what do you want from us?’

Amru (turning to the Najâshi): ‘O king, these people have adjured our religion and that of our ancestors; they have insulted, and are insulting, our gods in order to pervert the principles of our young men, and for this reason our unanimity has been turned into discontent. Surrender them to us that we may restore the ancient order of things.’

The majority of chroniclers relate that on this occasion the Najâshi said to Ja’far: ‘A’mru and O’mmârah have brought a message from the Qoraish that you renounced their religion, but are following neither Judaism nor Christianity. Inform us therefore about your religion.’

Ja’far: ‘We followed their religion until the time when Allah the Most High and Glorious sent an apostle to us, whom we know to be an individual of noble descent and con­nections, of veracious speech and deeds. He is honest, peaceable, and forgiving; he has recited to us words not at all resembling human conceptions, and has, by evident proofs and convincing miracles, demonstrated his claim to be true. Therefore we have believed him and acknowledged him to be a prophet. He has invited us to profess monotheism and to reject all other religions. He has ordered us to abstain from all wickedness and sin, to observe the times of fasting and of prayer, to cherish our kindred, to pay our religious tax, to adhere to purity of morals, and to practise all laudable acts. But when the people became aware of our principles they stretched forth the hands of oppression, which we endured as long as we could; but at last we complained to our prophet, who advised us to emigrate to your majesty’s dominions, where we would remain free from the wicked attempts of our enemies in the shadow of the protection and the com­passion of your majesty.’

The Najâshi: ‘Are you able to recite any of the words which have been revealed to your prophet?’

Accordingly, Ja’far began to recite the Sura K.H.Y.A.S.,* and when he came to the verse ‘And eat and drink and calm thy mind,’* the Najâshi began to weep, so that tears trickled from his eyes upon his moustache, and the bishops, who, having opened the book [of the Gospels], were sitting around, cried so much that the moustache of every one, as well as the volume he had before him, became wet. The Najâshi then said: ‘Verily this is the truth.’ But according to another tradition he exclaimed: ‘By God! these words are the same as those revealed to Mûsa [Moses], and have come from the courts of heaven.’ Then he turned towards A’mru A’ass and O’mmârah, and said: ‘By God! I shall not surrender this company to you, nor leave you together.’

Omm Solmah* says: ‘When the Qoraish envoys returned disappointed and angry from the audience, A’mru A’ass said: “By Allah! I shall go to the Najâshi to-morrow, and shall annihilate them.” A’bdullah Bin Rafia’h endeavoured to dissuade him from his purpose, but ineffectually; accordingly, he went the next morning to the Najâshi, and said: “These people maintain views contrary to yours with reference to I’sa [Jesus], because they pretend that He is a servant of God.” The Najâshi accordingly assembled the emigrants, and asked: “What do you say of I’sa?” Ja’far replied: “I declare that Allah the Most High has said: ‘He is the servant of Allah and His apostle, and His word wherewith He has impregnated Mariam; and a spirit from him.’” Hereon the Najâshi took up a little wooden stick from the ground, and exclaimed: “There is no difference between what we and you say of I’sa—u. w. b. —blessed are ye, and blessed is he to whom you have come. I bear witness that he is an apostle of the Lord, because I’sa—u. w. b.—has proclaimed the tidings of his advent, and we have seen his description in the Enjil. Do you settle comfortable in my country, and I shall punish everyone who insults you. Should I be offered great sums of gold I would not surrender one of you. As God has given me the land without a bribe, so shall I take no bribe, and shall listen to no one.” Then he returned the offerings and presents to the Qoraish.’

It is related that the father of the Najâshi had no other son besides him, but had a brother who had twelve sons. The Abyssinians conspired to slay the father of the Najâshi, and to raise his brother to the throne, by whose numerous sons the kingdom would afterwards be inherited, and would thus remain safe from the attempts of strangers. Accord­ingly they killed the father of the Najâshi and made his uncle king. Some time afterwards, when the Najâshi had attained years of discretion, he entered the service of his uncle, who gradually began to appreciate his intelligence and penetration, allowing him the greatest authority in state affairs. When the persons who had been concerned in the murder of his father perceived his good fortune, and apprehended that he might at some future time himself become the ruler of the country after the decease of his uncle, and punish them for their crime, they represented their fears to the king, and proposed to him either to kill or to exile the prince. The monarch, however, replied: ‘Woe unto you! Ere this you have assassinated his father, and now you want to murder him.’ But as the Abyssinians pressed him beyond measure, he was com­pelled to separate himself from the prince, whom the grandees of the realm sold to a navigator. Meanwhile, however, also the uncle of the Najâshi died, and none of his sons having been found worthy to govern after him, the nobles repented of their deed, went in search of the prince after the merchant, took him by force from the purchaser, brought him to the capital, and seated him on the throne of dominion, and the words of the Najâshi, ‘God the Most High has given me the land without a bribe,’ refer to this event. It is related that the merchant returned to Abyssinia and wanted the ministers of the Najâshi to refund to him the sum he had paid them, but as they refused to do so, he laid the following complaint before the king: ‘Your majesty’s courtiers had sold to me a slave, whom they afterwards again took away by force, and I hope a sense of equity and justice will induce your majesty to order them to return to me either the money or the slave.’ This justice-loving sovereign was of opinion that if the words of this man were true, they would have to restore to him either the money or the man. Accordingly they paid down the price they had taken for the Najâshi; and this was the first regular judgment decreed by that religious monarch—may Allah have abundant mercy on him. In other chronicles, however, the sale of the Najâshi is recorded in a different manner.