The Messenger of Allah ﷺ accepted their outward declarations, took their pledge, sought forgiveness for them, and consigned their inner secrets to Allah, the Exalted.
I then came before him. When I greeted him, he smiled—the smile of an angry man—and said, “Come here.” I walked up until I sat in front of him. He asked, “What kept you back? Had you not bought yourself a mount?”
I replied, “Indeed I had. By Allah, had I been sitting before anyone else in this world I would think I could escape his displeasure with some excuse, for I have been granted eloquence. But by Allah, I know that if today I were to tell you a lie that pleases you, Allah would soon make you angry with me; and if I tell you the truth, though you may be upset with me, I hope for Allah’s pardon through it. By Allah, I have no excuse. By Allah, I have never been stronger nor better provided for than when I stayed behind from you.”
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “As for this man, he has spoken the truth. Rise until Allah decides concerning you.” So I rose.
Some men of Banū Salimah followed after me, saying, “By Allah, we never knew you to commit any sin before this. You failed only in not having offered the Messenger of Allah ﷺ an excuse like those who stayed behind; it would have sufficed for your sin that the Messenger of Allah ask forgiveness for you.” They kept censuring me until I almost returned to retract my statement and accuse myself of lying.
I asked them, “Is anyone in the same situation as I am?” They replied, “Yes, two men said what you said, and they were told what you were told.” I asked, “Who are they?” They said, “Murārah ibn al-Rabīʿ al-ʿAmrī and Hilāl ibn Umayyah al-Wāqifī.” They named for me two righteous men who had witnessed Badr, and in them I found a model, so I went on my way once they had mentioned them to me.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ then forbade the Muslims to speak to any of us three, though there were others who had stayed behind. People avoided us and their attitude toward us changed until the earth itself seemed foreign to me—no longer the land I knew. We remained in that state for fifty nights.
As for my two companions, they became subdued and stayed in their homes weeping. I, however, was the youngest and strongest of them. I would go out to attend the prayers with the Muslims and walk through the markets, yet no one would speak to me. I would come to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, greet him while he sat with the people after the prayer, and ask myself whether his lips had moved to return my greeting or not. Then I would pray near him, stealing glances at him: when I was engaged in my prayer he would look at me, but when I turned toward him he would turn away.
When the estrangement of the people became too much for me, I went and climbed over the wall of the orchard of Abū Qatādah—he was my cousin and the dearest of people to me. I greeted him, but by Allah he did not answer my greeting. I said, “O Abū Qatādah, I beseech you by Allah, do you know that I love Allah and His Messenger?” He remained silent. I repeated my plea, yet he remained silent. I appealed a third time, whereupon he said, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” My eyes overflowed with tears and I turned away, climbing back over the wall.
While I was walking in the market of Madinah, a Nabatean from Syria who had brought food to sell was calling out, “Who will direct me to Kaʿb ibn Mālik?” People pointed him my way, and when he reached me he handed me a letter from the King of Ghassān. It read: “To proceed: It has reached me that your companion has shunned you. Allah has not left you in a land of humiliation or neglect; come to us and we will honor you.”
When I read it I said, “This too is part of the trial.” I went to the oven and burned it there.
When forty of the fifty nights had passed, a messenger from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to me and said, “The Messenger of Allah ﷺ orders you to separate from your wife.” I asked, “Should I divorce her, or what should I do?” He replied, “No—just separate from her and do not approach her.” The same command was delivered to my two companions. I then said to my wife, “Go to your family and stay with them until Allah decides concerning this matter.”
Kaʿb continued: