(Friday Sermon - August 16, 2019 )

Background

Hazrat Abdullah^(ra) bin Maz‘un belonged to the Banu Jumah tribe of the Quraish. His mother was Sukhaila bint Anbas. Yazid bin Roman narrates that Hazrat Abdullah^(ra) bin Maz‘un and Hazrat Qudamah^(ra) bin Maz‘un accepted Islam prior to the Holy Prophet^(sa) going to Dar-e-Arqam and preaching the message of Islam from there.

Migration to Abyssinia

Hazrat Abdullah^(ra) bin Maz‘un and all three of his brothers were part of the delegation which migrated to Abyssinia. When they learnt of the news that the Quraish had accepted Islam, they all returned. When the persecution against the Muslims exceeded all limits, the Holy Prophet^(sa) instructed the Muslims to migrate to Abyssinia since the king was a fair and just man, and treated no one unjustly under his rule. In those days, there was a very strong Christian government in Abyssinia and Najashi [Negus] was the king. In any case, in Rajab 5 Nabawi, upon the instruction of the Holy Prophet^(sa), 11 men and 4 women migrated towards Abyssinia. It was their great fortune that as they left Mecca and headed south, they arrived at Shuaiba, which was a huge port of Arabia at the time and God Almighty blessed them in such a manner that there was a trade ship ready to depart for Abyssinia. Subsequently, they peacefully boarded the ship and it departed from there. After arriving in Abyssinia, the Muslims enjoyed a life of peace and security and were given respite from the torment at the hands of the Quraish. However, shortly afterwards a rumour was propagated which also reached them stating that all of the Quraish have accepted Islam and there is complete peace for Muslims in Mecca. Subsequently, many of those who migrated to Abyssinia immediately returned. When they were close to Mecca, they learnt that this news was false and was in fact a ploy hatched by the disbelievers in order to bring the Muslims back from Abyssinia. They now faced a very difficult situation; some of them returned to Abyssinia and others sought protection from some of the influential men of Mecca. However, this protection did not last long and the persecution of the Quraish relentlessly continued and there was no place of peace or security for the Muslims in Mecca. The Holy Prophet^(sa) once again instructed his companions to migrate and discreetly they began preparing and migrated from Mecca. Eventually, the total number of Muslims who had migrated to Abyssinia was 100 of which 18 were women and the rest were men. Thus, this was how the second migration took place.

Participation in Battles

In any case, it is stated that Hazrat Abdullah^(ra) bin Maz‘un returned after the very first migration but it is not known whether or not he took part in the second migration to Abyssinia. Nonetheless, he migrated to Medina. Upon his migration to Medina, the Holy Prophet^(sa) established a bond of brotherhood between Hazrat Abdullah^(ra) bin Maz‘un and Hazrat Sahl^(ra) bin Ubaidullah Ansari. Along with all three of his brothers (i.e., Hazrat Uthman^(ra) bin Maz‘un, Hazrat Qudama^(ra) bin Maz‘un and Hazrat Sa‘ib^(ra) bin Maz‘un). Hazrat Abdullah^(ra) bin Maz‘un took part in the Battle of Badr alongside the Holy Prophet^(sa) as well as the Battles of Uhud and Khandaq. He passed away in 30 AH during the Khilafat of Hazrat Uthman^(ra) at the age of 60.