1422 — Muhammad ibn al-Husayn al-Farisi informed us. He said: Ahmad ibn Sa‘id al-Thaqafi informed us. He said: Muhammad ibn Yahya al-Dhuhli narrated to us. He said: ‘Abd al-Razzaq narrated to us. He said: Ma‘mar informed us, from al-Zuhri, who said: ‘Urwah ibn al-Zubayr informed me that ‘A’ishah said:

“I never knew my parents except that they followed this religion. Not a day passed without the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, coming to us at both ends of the day, morning and evening. When the Muslims were persecuted, Abu Bakr set out as an emigrant toward the land of Abyssinia. When he reached Bark al-Ghimad, he met Ibn al-Dughunnah, the chief of al-Qarah. Ibn al-Dughunnah said, ‘Where are you going, Abu Bakr?’

“Abu Bakr replied, ‘My people have driven me out, so I wish to travel through the land and worship my Lord.’

“Ibn al-Dughunnah said, ‘A man like you, Abu Bakr, should neither leave nor be driven out. You support the destitute, maintain family ties, bear the burdens of the weak, entertain guests, and help those afflicted by misfortune. I grant you my protection, so return and worship your Lord in your own land.’

“Ibn al-Dughunnah then set out and returned with Abu Bakr. He went around among the disbelievers of Quraysh and said, ‘Abu Bakr should neither leave nor be driven out. Would you drive out a man who supports the destitute, maintains family ties, bears the burdens of the weak, entertains guests, and helps those afflicted by misfortune?’ Quraysh then ratified Ibn al-Dughunnah’s protection and granted Abu Bakr safety. They said to Ibn al-Dughunnah, ‘Tell Abu Bakr to worship his Lord in his home and to pray there as much as he wishes, within the courtyard of his house.’

“So he would pray there and recite the Quran. The women and children of Quraysh would gather around him in amazement, looking at him. Abu Bakr was a man given to weeping; when he recited the Quran, he could not restrain his tears. This alarmed the notables of Quraysh, so they sent for Ibn al-Dughunnah. He came to them ⦗845⦘, and they said, ‘We granted Abu Bakr protection only on the condition that he worship his Lord in his home. But he has gone beyond that: he has built a mosque in the courtyard of his house and has made his prayer and recitation of the Quran public. We fear that he will lead our women and children astray. If he wishes to confine himself to worshipping his Lord in his home, he may do so; but if he insists on making this public, then ask him to return your guarantee of protection to you. We dislike violating the protection you granted him, but we cannot permit Abu Bakr to practise his religion openly.’

“‘A’ishah said: ‘Ibn al-Dughunnah then came to Abu Bakr and said, “Abu Bakr, you know the terms upon which I gave you my protection. Either confine yourself to that, or return my guarantee to me, for I do not wish the Arabs to hear that my protection has been violated in the case of a man to whom I granted it.” Abu Bakr replied, “I return your protection to you, and I am content with the protection of Allah and His Messenger.” The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was then in Mecca.’

Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim.