my companions and I were in Gaza when he suddenly descended upon us and asked, “Where are you from?” We told him, and he herded us all together and brought us before him. Abu Sufyān said, “By Allah, I have never met a man I would judge to be more cunning than that uncircumcised one”—meaning Heraclius. When we reached him he asked, “Which of you is most closely related to him?” I replied, “I am.” He said, “Bring him nearer.” He then proceeded with the account but did not mention any written message, and in it, as you can see, are remarkable details that Ibn Isḥāq alone transmits, to the exclusion of Maʿmar and Ṣāliḥ.

Yūnus also related, from Ibn Isḥāq, that al-Zuhrī told him: A Christian bishop who lived in that period informed me, saying, “When Dihyah ibn Khalīfah came to Heraclius with the letter, it read:

“In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.
From Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, to Heraclius, the great one of Byzantium: Peace be upon whoever follows the guidance. To proceed: Submit— and you will be safe; submit— and Allah will grant you your reward twice over. But if you refuse, then the sin of the peasants will rest upon you.”

When Heraclius had read it, he placed it between his thigh and his side. He then wrote to a man from Rome who could read Hebrew, informing him of what had come from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. The man wrote back, “He is the awaited prophet; there is no doubt about him. Follow him.”

So Heraclius summoned the leading men of Byzantium and had them gathered in the courtyard of his palace. He ordered the doors to be bolted upon them, then looked down on them from an upper chamber, fearful of their reaction, and said, “People of Rome! A letter from Ahmad has reached me, and by Allah, he is the prophet we have been waiting for. We find his description in our scripture and recognize him by his signs. Embrace Islam and follow him; your life in this world and the next will be secure.”

They let out a single snort, rushed toward the doors of the courtyard, and found them locked. He was frightened of them and said, “Bring them back to me.” They were returned to him, and he said, “I only said…"