Sahih al-Bukhari 3905

It is related that 'A'isha, the wife of the Prophet, said, "I have no recollection of my parents doing anything but following the deen of Islam. No day would pass without the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, visiting us at either end of it, both morning and evening. When the Muslims were being persecuted, Abu Bakr departed for Abyssinia as an emigrant until he reached Bark al-Ghimad where he met Ibn ad-Daghina, the chief of al-Qara. He asked, 'Where are you going, Abu Bakr?' Abu Bakr said, 'My people have driven me out. I am intending to travel in the earth and to worship my Lord.' Ibn ad-Daghina said, 'Someone like you should not leave nor be driven out. You help the poor, maintain ties of kinship, give surety for orphans, give hospitality to guests and help people in times of trouble. I am your protector, so return and worship your Lord in your own land.' Ibn ad-Daghina travelled and returned with Abu Bakr and went around to the nobles of the unbelievers of Quraysh and said to them, 'Someone like Abu Bakr should not leave nor be expelled. Will you expel a man who helps the poor, maintains ties of kinship, gives surety for orphans, gives hospitality to guests and helps people in times of trouble? Quraysh allowed the protection of Ibn ad-Daghina and gave security to Abu Bakr. They said to Ibn ad-Daghina, 'Tell Abu Bakr to worship his Lord in his house and to pray and recite as he likes but not to bother us with it, and he should not make it public. We fear that he will seduce our sons and women.' Ibn ad-Daghina told that to Abu Bakr and Abu Bakr began to worship his Lord in his house and not to do the prayer publicly or recite outside of his house. Then it occurred to Abu Bakr to build a mosque in the courtyard of his house and he began to pray in it and recite Qur'an, and the women and sons of the idolaters crowded around, admiring and looking at it. Abu Bakr was a man prone to weeping and he could not hold back his tears when he recited Qur'an. That alarmed the nobles of Quraysh who were idolaters and they sent to Ibn ad-Daghina who came to them. They said to him, 'We gave protection to Abu Bakr on condition that he would worship his Lord in his house and he has exceeded that and built a mosque in the courtyard of his house and has done the prayer and recitation publicly. We are afraid that he will seduce our sons and women. Go to him. If he wants to confine himself to worshipping his Lord in his house, he should do it. If he refuses not to do it in public, then ask him to return your pledge of protection to you. We dislike to break your pledge but we will not allow Abu Bakr to worship in public.'" 'A'isha said, "Ibn ad-Daghina went to Abu Bakr and said, 'You know the basis on which I gave you the pledge of protection. Either confine yourself to that or return my pledge to me. I do not want to hear the Arabs say that I broke my pledge to a man to whom I had given it.' Abu Bakr said, 'I return your protection to you. I am satisfied with the protection of Allah.' At that time the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was still in Makka. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'I have been shown your place of emigration. I saw a land with palm-trees between two lava-fields.' Some people emigrated to Madina and most of those who had emigrated to the land of Abyssinia returned from there to Madina. Abu Bakr prepared to emigrate and the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to him, 'Take your time. I hope to be given permission.' Abu Bakr said, 'My father be your ransom, do you hope for that?' He said, 'Yes.' Therefore Abu Bakr kept himself back in order to accompany the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. He fed two riding-camels he had on acacia leaves which had been knocked off with a stick for four months." 'A'isha said, "While we were sitting in the house of Abu Bakr around midday, someone said to Abu Bakr, 'This is the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, with his head covered at a time at which he did not used to come to us. Abu Bakr said, 'May my father and mother be his ransom, by Allah, he has only come at this hour because something has happened.'" She said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, came and asked for permission to enter and was given permission and he entered. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to Abu Bakr, 'Send out those who are with you.' He said, 'They are my family, Messenger of Allah, may my father be your ransom!' He said, 'I have been given permission to leave.' He said, 'In company, may my father be your ransom, Messenger of Allah?' The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'Yes.' Abu Bakr said, 'Take one of these two she-camels, Messenger of Allah, may my father be your ransom.' The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'I will take it for a price.'" 'A'isha said, "We prepared what they needed for the journey as quickly as possible and we put food for the journey in a bag. Asma' bint Abi Bakr cut a piece from his belt and used it to tie the mouth of the bag, and that is why she is called, 'She of the two belts.'" She said, "Then the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and Abu Bakr reached a cavel in Mt. Thawr and hid in it for three days. 'Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr, who was a young boy who was clever and quick-witted, would spend the night with them and he would leave them before dawn and would be in Makka with Quraysh in the morning as if he had spent the night there. He did not hear of anything which they were planning about them but that he would remember it and bring them the news of that when it became dark. 'Amir ibn Fuhayra, the freed slave of Abu Bakr, would graze some milk sheep and bring them to them a hour after nightfall. So they had fresh milk at night, which was the milk of their milk animals and milk heated with stones. 'Amir ibn Fuhayra would then call the sheep away at the end of the night. He did that each of the three nights. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and Abu Bakr hired a man of the Banu ad-Dil from the Banu 'Abd ibn 'Adi as an expert guide, (khirrit means expert guide.) He had taken an oath of alliance with the family of al-'As ibn Wa'il and followed the religion of the unbelievers of Quraysh. They both trusted him and gave him their mounts and arranged with him to meet them at the cave of Thawr after three nights. He brought them their mounts on the morning of the third day whereupon they set off. 'Amir ibn Fuhayra and the Dili guide went with them. He took them below Makka along the coastal route."

Yahya ibn Bukayr related to us: Al-Layth related to us, on the authority of ‘Uqayl [who said]: Ibn Shihab said: And ‘Urwah ibn az-Zubayr informed me: ‘A’ishah, the Prophet’s wife, said: I do not remember my parents otherwise than as followers of the [true] religion. Noday passed without the Messenger of Allah coming to us in the morning and in the evening. When the Muslims began to be persecuted, Abu Bakr set out with the intention of migrating to the country of Ethiopia, and reached Bark al-Ghimad. [There] Ibn ad-Daghinah, the chief of [the tribe of] al-Qarah, met him and said: Whereto goest thou, O Abu Bakr?—Abu Bakr answered: My people have made me leave [my country] Now I am going to wander through the world and to worship my Sustainer.— Thereupon Ibn ad-Daghinah said : Behold, a man such as thou art, O Abu Bakr, should not leave [his country], nor should he be driven away. Thou bringest gain to the destitute, and art kind to thy kindred, and supportest the weak, and art bounteous toward the guest, and helpest those in genuine distress. Behold, I shall be thy protector! Return, and worship thy Sustainer in thy own country!—Thereupon [Abu Bakr] returned, and Ibn ad-Daghinah accompanied him. In the evening [after their arrival in Mecca], Ibn ad-Daghinah visited the nobles of the Quraysh one by one , and spake to them thus: Behold, a man like Abu Bakr should not leave [his country], nor should he be driven away. Do ye drive away a man who bringeth gain to the destitute, is kind to his kindred, supporteth the weak, is bounteous toward the guest, and helpeth those in genuine distress?—The Quraysh could not disregard the protection offered by Ibn ad-Daghinah, and so they said unto him: Bid, then, Abu Bakr worship his Lord in his own house. He may pray and recite there as much as he liketh, but he shall not trouble us therewith, and shall not do it openly, for, behold, we fear lest he lead astray our women and children. Ibn ad-Daghinah reported this to Abu Bakr. And Abu Bakr did such-wise for a certain time. He worshipped his Lord in his house, and did not pray openly, nor did he recite [the Qur’an] outside his own house. Thereafter Abu Bakr changed his mind, and built a mosque in front of his house, where he prayed and recite the Qur’an. The women and children of the idolaters would throng about him, looking at him in wonder. And Abu Bakr often wept, for he had no power over his eyes whenever he recited the Qur’an. This caused anxiety to the nobles of the idolatrous Quraysh, and they sent for Ibn ad-Daghinah. He came into them, and they said: We accepted thy protection of Abu Bakr on the condition that he worship his Lord in his house. Now he hath violated this [condition]; he hath built a mosque in front of his house, and openly prayeth and reciteth therein. Behold, we are now afraid lest he lead astray our women and children. Forbid him, therefore, [to do this] If he choose to confine the worship of his Lord to his own house, he may do so. But if he persist in doing it openly, demand of him that he release thee from thy obligation to protect him, for we are loath to break our compact with thee. We never gave Abu Bakr the right to act openly. ‘A’ishah continued: Thereupon Ibn ad-Daghinah went to Abu Bakr and said: Thou knowest well what undertaking I gave on thy behalf. Now, either keep to it or release me from my obligation to protect thee. For, behold, I do not wish the Arabs to hear that an undertaking which I gave on behalf of another man hath been broken.—Abu Bakr answered: Then, behold, I release thee from thy promise to protect me, and I shall be content with the protection of Allah, the Lord of Might and Glory. At that time the Prophet was in Mecca. And he spake thus to the Muslims: I have been shewn [in dream] the goal of your migration—a land of palm-trees between two tracts strewn with black stones. —These are the two Stony, rugged tracts [near Madinah]— —Those who had resolved upon migration migrated thereupon to Madinah; and most of those who had [previously] migrated to the country of Ethiopia returned [to Arabia and betook themselves] to Madinah. And Abu Bakr made ready to go to Madinah; but the Messenger of Allah said unto him: Wait a while! For, behold, I [also] hope to receive permission therefor [from Allah] —Abu Bakr exclaimed: Dost thou indeed except this, O thou for whom I would sacrifice my father?—[The Prophet] answered: Yea.—So Abu Bakr postponed his departure for the sake of the Messenger of Allah, so that he might keep him company. And he fed two dromedaries, which he happened to possess, with acacia-leaves —that is, [with] khabat— [Continuously] for four months. Ibn Shihab said: ‘Urwah said: ‘A’ishah continued: And we were sitting one day in Abu Bakr’s house when, in the heat of noon, someone said to Abu Bakr: The Messenger of Allah is approaching, his head covered, at this hour at which he never used to visit us before!—And Abu Bakr exclaimed: My father and my mother may be sacrificed for him! By Allah! naught but a weighty matter could bring him at this hour!—The Messenger of Allah came and asked leave to enter; and he was let in. He came in and said unto Abu Bakr: Tell everyone who is with thee to go away. —Abu Bakr replied: Behold, only the members of thy family are here. My father may be sacrificed for thee, O Messenger of Allah!—[The Prophet] said: Behold, now I have received permission [from Allah] to go away.—Abu Bakr exclaimed: [Am I to go in thy] company? [For] I would sacrifice for thee my father, O Messenger of Allah!—The Messenger of Allah answered: Yea.—Abu Bakr said: Then take, O Messenger of Allah, thou for whom I would sacrifice my father, one of these two dromedaries of mine.—The Messenger of Allah said: [But only] against payment. ‘A’ishah continued: Thereupon we made quick preparations for the journey of two, and put into a leather-bag some provisions for them. Asma’, Abu Bakr’s daughter, cut a piece of her girdle and tied therewith the mouth of the leather-bag; and hence she was named “She of the Girdle” (Dhat an-Nitaq). Later, the Messenger of Allah and Abu Bakr reached a cave on Mount Thawr and hid themselves there for three nights. ‘Abd Allah ibn Abi Bakr, a sagacious and clever boy, used to stay with them overnight; he would leave them before daybreak, so that he was in the morning with the Quraysh in Mecca as if he had spent the night [there] And whenever he heard of any hostile plan concerning the two [fugitives], he kept it well in his memory until he was able to reach them under the cover of darkness and communicate it to them. And ‘Amir ibn Fuhayrah, Abu Bakr’s freedman, kept for them a milch-ewe from [his master’s] flock, and would drive it to them one hour after night-fall. Thus they have always enough milk—the [fresh] milk of the ewe and the milk which they warmed by means of heated stones. Before dawn, ‘Amir ibn Fuhayrah would call the ewe away. Such-wise he did each of the three nights. The Messenger of Allah and Abu Bakr had hired a man of [the tribe] Banu’d-Dil—that is, of Banu ‘Abd ibn ‘Adi —as guide; he was a khirrit —a Khirrit is one who is highly skilled in guiding— who had dipped [his hand in blood] in [token of] alliance with the family of al-‘As ibn Wa’il as-Sahmi, and had the same beliefs as the heathen Quraysh. The two [fugitives] had confided in him and handed over to him their two dromedaries; and they had told him to come with him to the cave of [Mount] Thawr on the morning after the third night. And [when they set out,] ‘Amir ibn Fuhayrah and the guide went with them, and led them along the road by the sea-coast.