Sahih al-Bukhari 7

Abu'l-Yaman al-Hakam ibn Nafi related to us, saying: Shuaib told us, on the authority of az-Zuhri, who said: Ubaid Allah ibn Abd Allah ibn Utbah ibn Masud told me that Abd Allah ibn Abbas informed him that Abu Sufyan ibn Harb told him that Heraclius sent for him whilst he was in a small caravan of Quraish. They were trading in Syria during the truce which the Apostle of God had granted to Abu Sufyan and the heathen Quraish. Then they came unto him, and they were in Jerusalem. Thereupon he called them to his council chamber, and around him were the great ones of Byzantium. Thereafter he called them and called his interpreter and said: "Which of you is by birth the nearest unto that man who claimeth to be a prophet?" Abu Sufyan said: I said: "I am the nearest of them by birth." Then Heraclius said: "Draw him nearer unto me and bring his companions nearer and let them stand behind him." Thereafter he said to his interpreter: "Tell them: Behold, I am going to ask this one about that man, and if he lieth unto me, ye belie him." Abu Sufyan said: And, by God, had it not been for shame that they would disclose my lie, indeed I would have lied about him. Thereafter, the first he asked me was: "How is his descent amongst you?" I said: "He is a man of birth amongst us." He said: "And did any of you ever say this saying before him?" I said: "No." He said: "And was there a king amongst his forefathers?" I said: "No." He said: "And do the noble ones of the people follow him or the poor amongst them?" I said: "Rather the poor amongst them." He said: "Do they increase or decrease in numbers?" I said: "Rather they increase." He said: "And doth any of them turn apostate out of disgust with his religion, after having embraced it?" I said: "No." He said: "And did ye suspect him of lying before he said what he said?" I said: "No." He said: "And doth he break his pledges?" I said: "No. But we are at truce with him, and we do not know what he will do with it." Abu Sufyan said: And I could not say a word containing something against him save this one word. He said: "Did ye fight him?" I said: "Yea." He said: "How, then, was your fight with him?" I said: "The war between us and him is like well-buckets: he wins from us and we win from him." He said: "What is it that he enjoineth upon you?" I said: "He saith: Worship God alone and associate naught with Him; and give up the sayings of your forefathers. And he enjoineth upon us prayer and truthfulness and purity and the duties of kinship." Thereupon he said to the interpreter: "Tell him: I asked thee about his descent, and thou saidst he is a man of birth amongst you; and so are the Apostles, they are sent from amongst the nobility of their people. And I asked thee whether any of you had said that saying before, and thou saidst, no; and I said unto myself: If anyone had said that saying before him, indeed I would say, the man followeth a saying that hath been said before him. And I asked thee whether there was a king amongst his forefathers, and thou saidst, no; and I said unto myself: Had there been a king amongst his forefathers, I would say, he claimeth the kingdom of his forefather. And I asked thee whether ye suspected him of lying before he said what he said, and thou saidst, no; and indeed I know that he would not have refrained from lying unto men and then lie unto God. And I asked thee whether the noble ones of the people followed him or the poor amongst them, and thou saidst that the poor amongst them followed him; and these are the followers of the Apostles. And I asked thee whether they increase or decrease in numbers, and thou saidst that they increase; and such is the case with faith to the very end. And I asked thee whether any of them had turned apostate out of disgust with his religion, after having embraced it, and thou saidst, no; and such is the case with faith whenever its joy mingles with the hearts. And I asked thee whether he breaketh his pledges, and thou saidst, no; and such is the case with the Apostles: they do not break their pledges. And I asked thee about the things he enjoineth upon you, and thou saidst that he enjoineth upon you to worship God and to associate naught with Him, and that he forbiddeth you the worship of idols and enjoineth upon you prayer and truthfulness and purity. Thence, if what thou sayest is true, he will take possession of the place where these two feet of mine stand! And, indeed, I knew he was to appear, though I did not think he would be from amongst you. And if I but knew that I could reach him, indeed I would endeavour to meet him; and if I were with him, indeed I would wash his feet." Thereafter he called for the letter which the Apostle of God had sent with Dihyah unto the Chief of Busra, who had transmitted it to Heraclius. Then he read it, and, behold, this was in it: "In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Dispenser of Grace. From Muhammad, God's slave and Apostle, unto Heraclius, the Chief of Byzantium. Peace be upon whoso followeth the right guidance. And thereupon: Behold, I call upon thee with the call of Islam. Accept Islam, and thou shalt be saved; God will give thee thy reward twofold. And if thou wilt turn away, then, indeed, upon thee be the sin of the humble folk. O People of the Scripture! Come unto the word that we and ye have in common: that we shall worship none but God and associate naught with Him; and that we shall not take one another for lords instead of God. And if they turn away, then say: Bear witness that we are they who submit unto God." Abu Sufyan further said: Thereupon, when Heraclius said what he said and finished the reading of the letter, the uproar became great in his presence and the voices grew loud, and we left. And when we left, I said unto my friends: "Verily, the cause of Abu Kabshah's son hath prevailed; behold, the king of Banu al-Asfar is afraid of him." And I remained convinced that he would emerge victorious, till, at the end, God infused Islam into me. And Ibn an-Natur, the governor of Jerusalem and friend of Heraclius, was a bishop of the Christians of Syria. He related: When Heraclius came to Jerusalem, one morning he rose worried in his soul; then some of his priests said unto him: "Indeed, we are astonished at thy countenance." Ibn an-Natur further said: And Heraclius was a seer who observed the stars. And when they asked him, he said unto them: "Behold, last night, when I observed the stars, I saw that the King of Circumcision hath now appeared. Who, then, circumciseth from amongst this nation?" They said: "Nobody circumciseth but the Jews; and their existence may not bother thee. Write unto the cities of thy kingdom, and they will kill whoso there is of the Jews." Thereupon, whilst they were thus occupied, there came unto Heraclius a man whom the king of Ghassan had sent to inform the Emperor about the Apostle of God. Then, when he had heard his tale, Heraclius said: "Go and see whether he is circumcised or not." Then they looked at him and reported him to be circumcised. And Heraclius asked him about the Arabs; thereupon he said: "They circumcise." Then Heraclius said: "It is this people's king that hath now appeared!" Thereafter Heraclius wrote unto a friend of his at Constantinople who was his equal in knowledge. And Heraclius proceeded toward Hims; and ere he reached Hims, there came unto him a letter from his friend in which he agreed with the view of Heraclius regarding the appearance of the Prophet and that he was indeed a Prophet. Thereupon Heraclius invited the great men of Byzantium into his castle at Hims. Then he gave an order concerning its doors, and they were locked; then he rose and said: "O ye people of Byzantium! Do ye care for salvation and wisdom, and that your kingdom be confirmed? Then ye will vow allegiance unto that Prophet." Then they hurried to the doors with the hurry of wild asses, and found them locked. And when Heraclius saw their repugnance and despaired of the possibility of their accepting the faith, he said: "Bring them back unto me!" And he said: "Behold, I said these words of mine now so that I might try therewith your ardour with regard to your religion; and now I have seen." Then they prostrated themselves before him and were pleased with him. And this was the last of Heraclius regarding this matter. Salih ibn Kaisan, Yunus and Mamar narrated this tradition, on the authority of az-Zuhri.