and said, “Leave us alone, for by my life, we have come for something other than this.” Iyas fell silent, and the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, rose and left them. They returned to Medina, and the Battle of Bu'ath took place between the Aws and the Khazraj. Not long afterward, Iyas ibn Mu'adh died.

Then, when Allah, Exalted is He, willed to make His religion prevail and to honour His Prophet, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, went out during the pilgrimage season in which he met the group of Helpers. As he did at every pilgrimage season, he presented himself to the tribes of the Arabs. At al-'Aqabah, he met a group of the Khazraj for whom Allah intended good. They were six men: As'ad ibn Zurarah; 'Awf ibn al-Harith, who was Ibn 'Afra'; Rafi' ibn Malik al-'Ajlani; Qutbah ibn 'Amir ibn Hadidah; 'Uqbah ibn 'Amir ibn Nabi; and Jabir ibn 'Abd Allah.

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, asked them, “Who are you?” They replied, “A group from the Khazraj.” He asked, “Are you allies of the Jews?” They said, “Yes.” He said, “Will you not sit so that I may speak with you?” They said, “Certainly.” So they sat with him, and he called them to Allah, Exalted is He, presented Islam to them, and recited the Quran to them.

They said: One of the ways in which Allah prepared them for Islam was that Jews lived alongside them in their land. The Jews were people of Scripture and knowledge, whereas they were people of idols and associationism. Whenever there was any dispute between them, the Jews would say, “A prophet has now been sent, whose time has drawn near. We shall follow him and kill you alongside him with the slaughter of 'Ad and Iram.”

When the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, spoke to those men and called them to Allah, Exalted is He, some of them said to the others, “People, by Allah, you know that he is the prophet with whom the Jews have threatened you. Do not let them precede you to him.” Thus, they responded to him, believed him, and embraced Islam. They said, “We have left behind a people between whom there is no enmity and evil greater than that which exists among them. Perhaps Allah will unite them through you. We shall return to them and call them to your cause. If Allah unites them under you, then no man will be mightier than you.”

They then departed from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, returning to their land as believers in him. When they reached Medina, they spoke to their people about the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and called them to Islam, until it became widespread among them. There was not a single household of the Helpers in which the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, was not spoken of.

Then, in the following year, twelve men of the Helpers came to the pilgrimage season: As'ad ibn Zurarah; 'Awf and Mu'adh, the two sons of 'Afra'; Rafi' ibn Malik ibn al-'Ajlan; Dhakwan ibn 'Abd al-Qays; 'Ubadah ibn al-Samit; Yazid ibn Tha'labah; al-'Abbas ibn 'Ubadah; 'Uqbah ibn 'Amir; and Qutbah ibn 'Amir—all of these were Khazrajis—as well as Abu al-Haytham ibn al-Tayhan and 'Uwaymir ibn Sa'idah, who were from the Aws. They met him at al-'Aqabah, and this was the First Pledge of al-'Aqabah. They pledged allegiance to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, on the terms of the Pledge of the Women: that they would not associate anything with Allah, nor steal, nor commit adultery—to the end of the verse. “If you fulfil this, then Paradise is yours. If you fall into any of these matters and are subjected to its fixed legal penalty in this world, it will be an expiation for it. But if it is concealed from you, then your affair rests with Allah: if He wills, He will punish you; and if He wills, He will forgive you.” He said: This was before warfare was made obligatory upon them.

He said: When the people departed, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, sent with them Mus'ab ibn 'Umayr ibn Hashim ibn 'Abd Manaf. He instructed him to teach them the recitation of the Quran, teach them Islam, and give them understanding of the religion. In Medina, Mus'ab was known as the Quran teacher, and he lodged with As'ad ibn Zurarah. Then As'ad ibn Zurarah went out with Mus'ab and entered with him one of the enclosed gardens of Banu Zafar,