THE MIGRATION TO ABYSSINIA
The address of Jafar ibn abi Talib so touched the heart of King Negus that the King as well as the courtiers were moved to tears.
When the Prophet of Islam started his mission in Makkah, polytheism prevailed there. Therefore, the Makkans opposed his call. Those who accepted Islam were persecuted in various ways. In the fifth year of his prophethood, the Prophet asked his Companions to leave Makkah for Abyssinia. The Companions emigrated on two occasions. In all, they numbered one hundred and twenty.
When the Makkans learned that the Companions of the Prophet had left for Abyssinia and were living there comfortably, they sent two of their men, Amr ibn al Aas and Abdullah ibn abi Rabia, to Negus, the King of Abyssinia. They offered presents to the king and his courtiers and said that some foolish persons from their people had taken refuge in his country. They had forsaken their religion and these emissaries requested the king and his courtiers to surrender them. They urged the king to give them up and return them to their own people.
It is a long story. To put it briefly, the courtiers of King Negus came under the influence of the Makkan delegation, and they recommended to the king that he give them up and return them to Makkah. It was a very delicate situation. It would have been like throwing them to the wolves. But at this delicate moment what came to the rescue of the Muslims was their missionary zeal, which was what they really possessed.
The king refused to take any action against the Muslims without hearing their side of the story. So, he summoned the Prophet’s Companions and when they came to the court, the king asked them, “What is the religion that they have received from the Arab Prophet?” At this, Jafar ibn abi Talib stood up and made a speech that has been recorded in the biographies of the Prophet. He told the king about the teachings of the Prophet of Islam in detail. Then he recited a part of the chapter on Mary in the Quran. King Negus wept until his beard was wet and the courtiers too wept when they heard what Jafar read to them. Afterward, King Negus gave orders for the gifts of the Makkans to be returned to them. Then he turned to the Muslims and said “Go, for you are safe in my country.” So the Makkans left the court crestfallen, while the Muslims lived there comfortably in total security. (Sirat Ibn Ishaq, Vol. 1, pp. 215-16)
