English11.Rejection.
There was one main reason for the leaders of Quraish to oppose the Prophet (peace be
upon him), and to prevent him from spreading his message. Makkah was a centre of pilgrimage because of the Ka’bah, which housed many idols of the neighbouring tribes. The leaders feared that once the concept of worshiping only one God became popular, the tribes would stop visiting the idols and therefore affect the economy of the city.
After years of knowing Muhammad (peace be upon him) as the most kind and honest among them, the Quraish started insulting the Prophet (peace be upon him), ridiculing him and even calling him mad. Yet with all this abuse hurled upon him, he (peace be upon him) would never speak a bad word in return.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) was subjected to every kind of cruelty and insult. Thorns were spread in his path and he was pelted with dirt and rubbish. Once, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) went to pray near the Ka’bah. Some men from the Quraish quickly surrounded him and attacked him all together. One of them took of his cloak and tried strangling him. Abu Bakr quickly came to the Prophet’s rescue and said: “Would you kill a man just for saying, My Lord is Allah?”
When persecution failed, the Quraish tried other methods to stop the Prophet (peace be upon him) from preaching his message. Once, ‘Utbah ibn Rabi’ah came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) with an offer, which he thought was too tempting to be refused. He said: “If you want money, we will collect some of our property and make you the richest among us. If you want honour, we will make you our chief so that every decision is yours. If you want kingdom, we will make you our King.”
When ‘Utbah had finished, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) recited some verses from Surah Fussilat and refused the offer.
‘Utbah went back to his companions and described what he heard of the Qu’ran. He said: “By God! I have heard words the like of which I have never heard before. By God! It is neither poetry nor magic. O Men of Quraish! Listen to me! Leave this man alone. Be kind towards him and don’t get in his way.”
Sadly, the words of ‘Utbah, fell on deaf ears and the Quraish refused to take his advice.