Skip to main content

Invitation of Islam to Heraclius, The Emperor of Byzantine:

Hadith on Invitation of Islam to Heraclius, The Emperor of Byzantine

Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Abbas:

Abu Sufyan bin Harb informed me that Heraclius had sent a messenger to him while he had been accompanying a caravan from Quraish. They were merchants doing business in Sham (Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan), at the time when Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) had truce with Abu Sufyan and Quraish infidels. So Abu Sufyan and his companions went to Heraclius at Ilya (Jerusalem). Heraclius called them in the court and he had all the senior Roman dignitaries around him. He called for his translator who, translating Heraclius's question said to them, "Who amongst you is closely related to that man who claims to be a Prophet?" Abu Sufyan replied, "I am the nearest relative to him (amongst the group)." 

Heraclius said, "Bring him (Abu Sufyan) close to me and make his companions stand behind him." Abu Sufyan added, Heraclius told his translator to tell my companions that he wanted to put some questions to me regarding that man (The Prophet) and that if I told a lie they (my companions) should contradict me." Abu Sufyan added, "By Allah! Had I not been afraid of my companions labeling me a liar, I would not have spoken the truth about the Prophet. The first question he asked me about him was: 

'What is his family status amongst you?' 

I replied, 'He belongs to a good (noble) family amongst us.' 

Heraclius further asked, 'Has anybody amongst you ever claimed the same (i.e. to be a Prophet) before him?' 

I replied, 'No.' 

He said, 'Was anybody amongst his ancestors a king?' 

I replied, 'No.' 

Heraclius asked, 'Do the nobles or the poor follow him?' 

I replied, 'It is the poor who follow him.' 

He said, 'Are his followers increasing decreasing (day by day)?' 

I replied, 'They are increasing.' 

He then asked, 'Does anybody amongst those who embrace his religion become displeased and renounce the religion afterwards?' 

I replied, 'No.' 

Heraclius said, 'Have you ever accused him of telling lies before his claim (to be a Prophet)?' 

I replied, 'No. ' 

Heraclius said, 'Does he break his promises?' 

I replied, 'No. We are at truce with him but we do not know what he will do in it.' I could not find opportunity to say anything against him except that. 

Heraclius asked, 'Have you ever had a war with him?' 

I replied, 'Yes.' 

Then he said, 'What was the outcome of the battles?' 

I replied, 'Sometimes he was victorious and sometimes we.' 

Heraclius said, 'What does he order you to do?' 

I said, 'He tells us to worship Allah and Allah alone and not to worship anything along with Him, and to renounce all that our ancestors had said. He orders us to pray, to speak the truth, to be chaste and to keep good relations with our Kith and kin.' 

Heraclius asked the translator to convey to me the following, I asked you about his family and your reply was that he belonged to a very noble family. In fact all the Apostles come from noble families amongst their respective peoples. I questioned you whether anybody else amongst you claimed such a thing, your reply was in the negative. If the answer had been in the affirmative, I would have thought that this man was following the previous man's statement. Then I asked you whether anyone of his ancestors was a king. Your reply was in the negative, and if it had been in the affirmative, I would have thought that this man wanted to take back his ancestral kingdom. 

I further asked whether he was ever accused of telling lies before he said what he said, and your reply was in the negative. So I wondered how a person who does not tell a lie about others could ever tell a lie about Allah. I, then asked you whether the rich people followed him or the poor. You replied that it was the poor who followed him. And in fact all the Apostle have been followed by this very class of people. Then I asked you whether his followers were increasing or decreasing. You replied that they were increasing, and in fact this is the way of true faith, till it is complete in all respects. I further asked you whether there was anybody, who, after embracing his religion, became displeased and discarded his religion. Your reply was in the negative, and in fact this is (the sign of) true faith, when its delight enters the hearts and mixes with them completely. I asked you whether he had ever betrayed. You replied in the negative and likewise the Apostles never betray. Then I asked you what he ordered you to do. You replied that he ordered you to worship Allah and Allah alone and not to worship any thing along with Him and forbade you to worship idols and ordered you to pray, to speak the truth and to be chaste. If what you have said is true, he will very soon occupy this place underneath my feet and I knew it (from the scriptures) that he was going to appear but I did not know that he would be from you, and if I could reach him definitely, I would go immediately to meet him and if I were with him, I would certainly wash his feet.' Heraclius then asked for the letter addressed by Allah's Apostle which was delivered by Dihya to the Governor of Busra, who forwarded it to Heraclius to read. The contents of the letter were as follows: "In the name of Allah the Beneficent, the Merciful (This letter is) from Muhammad the slave of Allah and His Apostle to Heraclius the ruler of Byzantine. Peace be upon him, who follows the right path. Furthermore I invite you to Islam, and if you become a Muslim you will be safe, and Allah will double your reward, and if you reject this invitation of Islam you will be committing a sin by misguiding your Arisiyin (peasants). (And I recite to you Allah's Statement:) 

'O people of the scripture! Come to a word common to you and us that we worship none but Allah and that we associate nothing in worship with Him, and that none of us shall take others as Lords beside Allah. Then, if they turn away, say: Bear witness that we are Muslims (those who have surrendered to Allah).' (3:64). 

Abu Sufyan then added, "When Heraclius had finished his speech and had read the letter, there was a great hue and cry in the Royal Court. So we were turned out of the court. I told my companions that the question of Ibn-Abi-Kabsha) (the Prophet (ﷺ) Muhammad) has become so prominent that even the King of Bani Al-Asfar (Byzantine) is afraid of him. Then I started to become sure that he (the Prophet) would be the conqueror in the near future till I embraced Islam (i.e. Allah guided me to it)." 

The sub narrator adds, "Ibn An-Natur was the Governor of llya' (Jerusalem) and Heraclius was the head of the Christians of Sham. Ibn An-Natur narrates that once while Heraclius was visiting ilya' (Jerusalem), he got up in the morning with a sad mood. Some of his priests asked him why he was in that mood? Heraclius was a foreteller and an astrologer. He replied, 'At night when I looked at the stars, I saw that the leader of those who practice circumcision had appeared (become the conqueror). Who are they who practice circumcision?' The people replied, 'Except the Jews nobody practices circumcision, so you should not be afraid of them (Jews). 

'Just Issue orders to kill every Jew present in the country.' 

While they were discussing it, a messenger sent by the king of Ghassan to convey the news of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) to Heraclius was brought in. Having heard the news, he (Heraclius) ordered the people to go and see whether the messenger of Ghassan was circumcised. The people, after seeing him, told Heraclius that he was circumcised. Heraclius then asked him about the Arabs. The messenger replied, 'Arabs also practice circumcision.' 

(After hearing that) Heraclius remarked that sovereignty of the 'Arabs had appeared. Heraclius then wrote a letter to his friend in Rome who was as good as Heraclius in knowledge. Heraclius then left for Homs. (a town in Syrian and stayed there till he received the reply of his letter from his friend who agreed with him in his opinion about the emergence of the Prophet (ﷺ) and the fact that he was a Prophet. On that Heraclius invited all the heads of the Byzantines to assemble in his palace at Homs. When they assembled, he ordered that all the doors of his palace be closed. Then he came out and said, 'O Byzantines! If success is your desire and if you seek right guidance and want your empire to remain then give a pledge of allegiance to this Prophet (i.e. embrace Islam).' 

(On hearing the views of Heraclius) the people ran towards the gates of the palace like onagers but found the doors closed. Heraclius realized their hatred towards Islam and when he lost the hope of their embracing Islam, he ordered that they should be brought back in audience. 

(When they returned) he said, 'What already said was just to test the strength of your conviction and I have seen it.' The people prostrated before him and became pleased with him, and this was the end of Heraclius's story (in connection with his faith).


Sahih al-Bukhari 7 
In-book : Book 1, Hadith 7 
USC-MSA web (English) : Vol. 1, Book 1, Hadith 6  (deprecated)
Sahih Bukhari

Get Hadith Collection (All in one) App:https://goo.gl/8j06i9
#GreentechApps #Hadith

Source: received through WhatsApp message
Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

A child doesn’t break loudly. It happens quietly:

 - Be honest with yourself for a moment… When you see a child struggling… angry… insecure… constantly seeking attention… do you ever stop and ask, what did they grow up around? Who was present… and who wasn’t? Who listened… and who dismissed? Who loved… and who controlled? The Prophet ﷺ didn’t just speak about worship… he spoke about responsibility. كُلُّكُمْ رَاعٍ وَكُلُّكُمْ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ Each of you is responsible… and each of you will be questioned. And Allah didn’t say fix the world. He said protect your families. قُوا أَنفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًا This is where it begins. A child doesn’t break loudly. It happens quietly… in the way they start doubting themselves… in the way they stop feeling safe… in the way they look for love in the wrong places. So ask yourself… What is your home producing? Because one day… your child will become someone’s spouse… someone’s parent… someone who shapes the world. And whatever you planted… will not stay inside your home. Source...
Read more

Islamic tradition has long possessed its own highly structured, time-tested system for internal regulation: Muhasabah (spiritual self-auditing):

 - "The intelligent person is the one who takes account of himself (subjugates his soul) and works for what comes after death. And the helpless person is the one who follows his desires and then entertains baseless hopes in Allah." (Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2459; Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 4260) In an era dominated by hyper-connectivity and endless external noise, the human mind is rarely granted the space to simply pause. While modern psychology heavily promotes mindfulness as an antidote to this existential fatigue, Islamic tradition has long possessed its own highly structured, time-tested system for internal regulation: Muhasabah (spiritual self-auditing).  Far from being a vague, abstract concept, classical Islamic scholars treated self-reflection as an active, daily operational framework—a psychological necessity for purifying the heart and mastering the ego. By exploring the practical models left behind by giants like Imam Al-Ghazali and Ibn al-Qayyim , we uncover a time...
Read more

# The Invisible Foundation: How Islamic Scholarship Built the Modern West:

 - The history of "Western" knowledge is often told as a straight line from Ancient Greece to the European Renaissance. However, modern scholarship reveals that this narrative has a massive "missing middle."  For over five hundred years, the Islamic Golden Age did not just "preserve" ancient knowledge—it revolutionized it, creating the very empirical and logical tools the West uses today. ## 1. Beyond Preservation: The Birth of Experimentation While the Greeks excelled in deductive reasoning (thinking from general principles), Islamic scholars introduced the **inductive, experimental method**. The most prominent figure was **Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen)**. In his *Kitab al-Manazir* (Book of Optics), he rejected the Greek theory that the eye emits light. More importantly, he established that theories must be proven through controlled, repeatable experiments (Piniés, n.d.). This methodological shift is now recognized as the foundational root of the modern scient...
Read more

Some of the traditional methods of raising children in Tarim (Yemen):

*Raising children* Some of the traditional methods of raising children in Tarim (Yemen). This is really beautiful. Women expecting children would ensure every morsel going into their mouths was halal. Breastfeeding mothers would repeatedly recite Ayah al-Kursi, Surah al-Falaq, Surah al-Nas and du'as of protection over their babies. When a child first began to speak it would be taught to say: رَضِيتُ بِاللهِ رَبّاً، وبِالإِسْلامِ دِيناً، و بسيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ صلى الله عليه وسلم نَبِيَّاً ورَسُولاً ‘I am content with Allah as my Lord, with Islam as my religion, and with our Master Muhammad ﷺ as my Prophet and Messenger.’ Parents would teach their children the importance of making good intentions and what intentions to make just as they would teach them how to recite Surat al-Fatiha. Parents would teach their children to call upon Allah in every situation. If a child asked for something, his parents would tell him to perform wudu, pray two rak'ats and then ask Allah to fulfil his...
Read more

The Last Sermon (Khutbah) of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (Farewell Sermon):

 - The Last Sermon (Khutbah) of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (Farewell Sermon) Prophet Muhammad ﷺ delivered His ﷺ last sermon (Khutbah) on the ninth of Dhul Hijjah (12th and last month of the Islamic year), 10 years after Hijrah (migration from Makkah to Madinah) in the Uranah Valley of Mount Arafat. His ﷺ words were quite clear and concise and were directed to the entire humanity. After praising, and thanking Allah He ﷺ said: “O People, lend me an attentive ear, for I know not whether after this year, I shall ever be amongst you again. Therefore listen to what I am saying to you very carefully and TAKE THESE WORDS TO THOSE WHO COULD NOT BE PRESENT HERE TODAY. O People, just as you regard this month, this day, this city as Sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners. Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you. Remember that you will indeed meet your LORD, and that HE will indeed reckon your deeds.  AL...
Read more

A web-app that could assist the elderly with their namaz:

 Assalamu Alaikum! I made a web-app for the elderly. Backstory: my Nani used to be very punctual with her prayers but suddenly she stopped praying. My mom promptly noticed this change and asked her why she wasn’t praying and she said that it’s because she forgets the ayat, or what to say, or even the rakat. So my mom would sit with her and basically pray the whole namaz with her. Now years later my mom asked me to make an app that could assist the elderly with their namaz. So I made this web-app. If you guys know anyone that’s at an age where they’re starting to forget things and you think this could benefit them. Just let them know about it and let me get that sawab.  Thanks, Sherry Click to open: https://www.salahcompanion.us Source: the above information is recieved through whatsapp
Read more

Quran Juz 1 – Alif Laam Meem - Summary

 Quran Juz 1 – Alif Laam Meem Summary Join Us: https://chat.whatsapp.com/J14FpM5kWL0IABAtM0SnRW •        Surah Fatiha: Fatiha means opener. It comes first as per the sequence in the Quran, but fifth in terms of revelation. •        As per a hadith in Tirmidhi, the likes of Surah Fatiha doesn’t exist in the previously revealed books. •        Fatiha miraculously accumulates all the 5 topics that the entire Quran deals with. They are: Tawheed (Oneness of Allah) & Risalah (prophethood), Hereafter, Shariah rules, beautiful ending of the followers of the Qur’anic world order, and the dreadful end to the opposers of it! Hence the reason we’re obliged to recite the essence of Quran – Surah Fatiha in every Ruku of the prayers. •        It also has other names like Surah Kanz, Al-Hamd, Munajaat, Al-Sawal etc. •        Surah Baqarah: Prophet Muhammed ﷺ said that Sahytan doesn’t enter the h...
Read more

“My knowledge is growing, but is it causing me to grow?”

A Ramadan of Change – 26 of 30 ** A nightly appointment with an angel ** In Ramadan, the Prophet Mohammad PBUH would be blessed with a nightly appointment with angel Jibreel who’d mutually study with him the Qur’an. Describing this and its effects, Ibnu ‘Abbaas said: كَانَ رسول الله - صلى الله عليه وسلم - أجْوَدَ النَّاسِ، وَكَانَ أجْوَدَ مَا يَكُونُ في رَمَضَانَ حِيْنَ يَلْقَاهُ جِب...
Read more

- Quran Juz 3 – Tilkar Rusul - Summary

 - Quran Juz 3 – Tilkar Rusul Summary Join Us: https://chat.whatsapp.com/J14FpM5kWL0IABAtM0SnRW •        Every prophet and messenger of Allah (peace be upon them) is highly respectable. •        Just like Prophet Muhammed ﷺ excels over other prophets, his Ummah excels over other prophets’ nations. •        Despite sending messengers and prophets, Allah didn’t force humanity to accept Islam, rather left if to its choice. •        Basis this choice, all of humanity will be questioned on the Day of Judgement (about its choice of religion and deeds). •        Humanity is advised to do good deeds and beautify its hereafter, as relations, requests (except who Allah grants permission), and negotiations will not benefit. •        Ayat al-Kursi is the 255th verse of Surah Baqah, which is the most honored Quranic verse, as it magnificently reflects Tawheed (Oneness of Allah...
Read more

The fitrah is already there when the child arrives. Your job as a parent is to protect it:

 - "We were hit and we turned out fine." Hamein to maar parhi. Hum to bilkul sahi hain. Gen Z is too soft. Maarna to pyar ki nishani hai. Allah ne permission di hai. Okay. Let's open that permission letter together. Because I want you to read what it actually says. THE HADITH PARENTS QUOTE TO DEFEND HITTING. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "Command your children to pray when they become seven years old, and beat them for it when they become ten years old; and arrange their beds separately." (Sunan Abu Dawud 495 — graded Hasan) Now let's stay in the text. Because the text has been misread for generations. It says command at seven. Not hit. Command, teach, encourage. For three full years. Patience first. Always. It says at ten there is a permission. One permission. For one thing. Prayer. Not talking back. Not spilling juice. Not embarrassing you in front of your mother-in-law. Not being too loud. Not being soft. Prayer. That's it. And even then classical sc...
Read more