In 620, having lost all hope of winning converts among his fellow townspeople, Muhammad limited his efforts to non-Meccans who attended fairs or made pilgrimages. During these efforts, Muhammad met six members of the Banu Khazraj tribe who were visiting Mecca, on a pilgrimage to the holy sites around the city. These six individuals had a history of raiding Jews in their locality, who in turn had warned them that a prophet would come, and with his help, the Jews would obliterate them. Upon hearing Muhammad's religious message, the six individuals said to each other, "This is the very prophet of whom the Jews warned us; don't let them get to him before us!" After embracing Islam, they returned to Medina and shared their encounter, hoping that by having their people—the Khazraj and the Aws, who had been at odds for so long—accept Islam and adopt Muhammad as their leader, unity could be achieved between them.
In February 621, five earlier converts met with Muhammad again. They were accompanied by seven new converts, including two people from the Banu Aws tribe. This gathering took place at the al-'Aqaba mountain pass, located just north of Mecca near the trade route. At the meeting, they took a pledge to Muhammad, known as the "pledge of women." It was so called because it contained no obligation to fight for Islam. One of the main tenets of this pledge was to renounce idols and affirm Allah as the only deity, with Muhammad as their leader. Muhammad then entrusted Mus'ab ibn Umayr to accompany them on their return to Medina to promote Islam.
In the pilgrimage season of 622, Muhammad had another meeting in Aqaba with the Medinan converts; this time, there were 75 of them, including 2 women. Muhammad's uncle al-Abbas, who accompanied him, made a speech at the beginning, declaring that Muhammad was "the most respected person among his kinsmen." This is quite in contrast with the fact that Muhammad had received strong opposition from his other uncle, Abu Lahab, as well as Abu Jahl and other Quraysh leaders. Al-Abbas also falsely stated that Muhammad had rejected offers from all but the men of Medina in an apparent attempt to create a sense of exclusivity and importance among them. Historical records, however, show that they were among the last groups Muhammad had tried to approach and that he had no other offers available.
Muhammad himself then spoke and invited their allegiance, asking them to protect him as they would their women and children. One of them, al-Bara, readily agreed, emphasizing the military prowess of his people. The other however, Abu al-Haytham, expressed concern that if they took the pledge and severed their ties with the Jews, Muhammad would return to his people after they gave him victories. Muhammad assured them that he was now one with them and would share their fate in war and peace. Twelve delegates, three from the Aws and nine from the Khazraj, were then selected to oversee the implementation of this pact. When the group inquired about the reward for their loyalty, Muhammad simply replied, "Paradise." They then took the oath, also known as the pledge of war.
Islamic tradition relates that, in light of the unfolding events, one of the Quraysh chiefs, Abu Jahl, Muhammad's childhood friend-turned-enemy, proposed a joint assassination of Muhammad by representatives of each Quraysh clan. Having been informed of this by the angel Gabriel, Muhammad asked his cousin Ali to lie on his bed covered with his green hadrami cloak, assuring him that it would keep him safe. Muhammad then went with Abu Bakr to a cave in Mount Thawr, about an hour's walk south of Mecca, and hid there. Abu Bakr's children and servants, who were still in Mecca, regularly brought them food. After three days in hiding, they set out for Medina on camels that Abu Bakr had bought in advance, and accompanied by a guide, Abdallah ibn Arqat, who was a pagan.
Muhammad's followers suffered from poverty after fleeing persecution in Mecca and migrating with Muhammad to Medina. Their Meccan persecutors seized their wealth and belongings left behind in Mecca. Beginning in January 623, Muhammad led several raids against Meccan caravans travelling along the eastern coast of the Red Sea. Members of different tribes were thus unified by the urgency of the moment. This unity was primarily based on the bonds of kinship.
Arabic: الهجرة, romanized: hijra, lit. 'Migration', originally 'a severing of ties of kinship or association'[1][2] /wiki/Arabic_language
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1 Muharram of the new fixed calendar corresponded to Friday, 16 July 622 CE, the equivalent civil tabular date (same daylight period) in the Julian calendar. The Islamic day began at the preceding sunset on the evening of 15 July. This Julian date (16 July) was determined by medieval Muslim astronomers by projecting back in time their own tabular Islamic calendar, which had alternating 30- and 29-day months in each lunar year plus eleven leap days every 30 years. For example, al-Biruni mentioned this Julian date in the year 1000 CE.[7] Although not used by either medieval Muslim astronomers or modern scholars to determine the Islamic epoch, the thin crescent moon would have also first become visible (assuming clouds did not obscure it) shortly after the preceding sunset on the evening of 15 July, 1.5 days after the associated dark moon (astronomical new moon) on the morning of 14 July.[8] /wiki/Julian_calendar
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